Trust Issues
by Erricane
Summary: The fox/bunny couple has returned to Zootopia after their 7-days off. But at the same time, many thefts have been pulled through the city and not a single mammal have any idea how all these rare artifacts and valuable items have been stolen.
1. Moving In

**A/N** : _Surprise to see a new story? You should be. Because tomorrow is the day my driver's test begins. You all are so supportive that I decided to write this before the test begins. Thanks for giving me hope. Just don't believe in me though. :P_

 _Also, this is actually a 3 genre story, mystery/friendship/romance. But because fanfiction is being a little 'female dog', I decided to put only 2 of the main genre._

 **Summary** : _The fox/bunny couple has returned to Zootopia after their 7-days off. But at the same time, many thefts have been pulled through the city and not a single mammal have any idea how all these rare artifacts and valuable items have been stolen._

 **Disclaimer** : _Zootopia and its characters belong to Disney. However, I own some of the characters in this story._

* * *

2 weeks has passed after Judy and Nick's return from BunnyBurrow. And during those 2 weeks, Judy actually manage to afford a home finally. It was still around Savanna Central but this time it's a single house. She packed up her stuff and texted Nick that it was time to go when suddenly, a knock on her door was heard.

She opened and found Nick texting. "Nick!" she said hugging him before getting a notification from her phone. She checked it and laughed. It was from Nick, saying, " _I'm here._ "

"You could have texted me sooner, you know," Nick said. He was also carrying a suitcase. And for some reason, he wasn't wearing his usual green hawaiian theme shirt. Instead, he was wearing a brown shirt with maple leaf theme on it. But he still kept the purple striped tie.

"What happened to your usual shirt?"

"Oh, you like it? I thought about changing from time to time now that we're about to… You know…"

He didn't even need to finish his sentence for her to get it. She grabbed her suitcase and locked the door. It was time to leave the Grand Pangolin Apartment.

Right after she returned the keys to the landlord, she thanked her for letting her stay and waved her goodbye. She held Nick's paw as the two walked their way to their new home.

They were going to live in a single house now. Which means, peace and quiet. And maybe for once, to throw a party. Nahhhhh.

"Have you heard about last night?" Judy said still walking with her todfriend.

"About the museum?" Nick asked.

She nodded. "This is the sixth time that's happened in only 2 weeks. And yet, no evidence or witnesses. Not even the cameras got it on tape."

"You know," Nick interrupted. "If I was a professional thief, which I never have been, I think I would have done some research."

She laughed. She knew he use to do a lot of schemes and cunning activities. But that was a long time ago. "How?" she asked.

"By working at the place so I can learn every angle and blind spot that I can take. And patience. Almost forgot about the patience." Nick then let out a yawn.

"Nick? You look tired."

"Yep. Been chatting with an old friend all night. Haven't seen him in years now so I thought I might as well take that chance to chat."

"Old friend?"

"Childhood even."

Judy looked at him, a little concerned. He looked a little TOO tired. Her ears dropped but she didn't wanna bring it up. It might upset him because she knew that whenever she talks about Nick's past, it'll be a little too harsh. And especially in this condition.

The couple finally reached their new home. It was a regular single house with a fence around it. The house was total white with one window on either side on the front. The door was all green with dark yellow trim around it and the lawn was cleanly mowed.

"I guess we can paint the house ourselves sooner or later," Judy said after seeing their house.

Nick just stared at it. He's never lived in a house before. He used to live in a flat in a shady area where there were only predators among him. But now, he felt a little warmer just by looking at the sight of his new home.

"You okay, Nick?" Judy tugged him on the sleeve.

"Yea…" he said smiling before giving her a kiss. "Thanks, by the way."

She blushed and looked down. "I-It was nothing. You DID say you wanted to come along."

"Glad I did."

She smiled after looking back up at him and grabbed his paw. "Come on."

The two entered the house and the first thing they saw was the living room on the left and the stairs on the right.

The walls were painted in a light brownish color which looked lively. There was a couch in front of the a flat screen television with a long coffee table in between. There were three cushions on the couch. One on the left, the other two on the right.

"It looks nice," Judy commented.

However, the first thing Nick did was he ran straight upstairs.

"Nick?!"

He opened the first door he found and saw a queen-size bed. "I call shotgun!" he exclaimed before tossing his briefcase aside and jumping into bed. He sighed in relief as he bury his face in the sheets. "So comfy…"

Judy looked at him, frowning. "This isn't your bed," she said, a foot thumping.

He turned around, his back on the bed and lay back down. "Sorry, Carrots. But I called dibs."

A sly smile formed on the bunny's face and she closed the door as she walked over to Nick. She sat next to him. "Actually…" she said, holding his face which caused him to blush. Her lips almost touching his ear and he can feel her hot breaths entering his ear.

He blushed as his other ear flicked, in embarrassment.

"It's OUR bed…" she whispered very, very closely.

His eyes widened along with his ears dropped down. He looked at her shly and then smiled nervously. "No wonder it's so big…"

She rubbed her paws on his chest which made him shiver. "Your fault for coming up here first," she said in a sexy voice to tease him.

Judy was normally the submissive one but now, she was dominating him.

He swallowed his nervousness but it just won't go down. His nervous smile was a little off as his blush grew redder.

And then, she nuzzled him on the nose and let him go.

He was a little surprised at first. He was for sure she was going to go full force on him but…

"You're… Not gonna continue?" he said as she walked away from him.

"Nah. You look exhausted so I think it was right you went to bed first." She held on to the doorknob of the other side gave him a seductive glance. "Sweet dreams," was the last thing she said before closing.

His head thud on the bed and he sighed. Nick was rather hoping she just kept going but she was right though. He was too tired to even tease her today. He lay his head back down on the comfy pillow slowly falling to sleep to as much as he needed.

Judy was checking out everywhere in their new home. The kitchen was kinda small but it looked tidy at least. There were many cabinets and drawers all prepared and she checked every single one of them just to see if they were clean. She even checked the refrigerator to see if it was working.

Judy always has that habit to see if everything was exactly perfect. Or at least almost perfect.

The bathroom included a shower and a bathtub right next to it. There was even a carpet just outside the bathroom door from them to wipe their feetsies.

She smiled in satisfaction. Everything was perfect. Now all they needed to do was just sit back and settled in.

She walked up to their room and found Nick already fast asleep. He was dead tired. But, he wasn't snoring though. She carefully lay next to him, facing him.

She giggled at how his mouth was hanging out and she helped closed it. This made him moved a little and frown. But didn't wake him up.

" _You really are that tired, huh?_ " she thought, cuddling into him.

Nick was totally out cold. She was surprised that he even managed to walk from his old place to hers then to here. She buried her face in his chest. She admits that she's tired too but just not as tired as him.

She decided to take a short nap with her unconscious todfriend as the day pass by.

Nick woke up and he looked around. Judy was already gone and he still had no idea that she slept with him earlier. He let out a yawn and stretched his arms before picking up his phone. 7 at night?!

" _Did I really sleep for that long?_ " he thought. He shrugged it off and puts his phone away after getting out of bed. And as he stepped outside, he sensed a delightful smell. His ears immediately perked up along with his tail.

He was about to go to the bathroom to wash up his face but instead he followed the delicious smell as if he was being hypnotized.

Judy was preparing dinner already. Some mushroom soup and baked potatoes was already on the table. She was putting down two plates of rice just as Nick entered the dining room.

"Oh, you're awake," she said noticing Nick's presence.

He rubbed the back of his head and yawned. "Smells delicious…" he commented.

She walked towards him and held his face. "You look terrible. Go and wash your face up."

"I was about to, until the smell of food took control of my body."

She laughed at his sarcastic remarks and playfully slapped his arm before he went to the bathroom.

While walking to the bathroom, Nick received a text message. He read it and it said, " _You already moved?_ "

He replied back. " _Yep. Looks nice too. When will we meet up?_ "

" _No idea. I hope soon. I have to go. Chat soon._ "

" _See ya._ "

The fox washed his face a few times until he was all awake. He looked into the mirror and sighed. "Nice to finally have a home…" he said to himself, wiping his face afterwards.

After dinner, the couple were watching the news. Nick was sitting back down on the couch while Judy was laying in his arms.

" _And again, just like last case, the mysterious thief, known as the Modern Robin Hood struck again. And this time, a Roman artifact, the Euphronios Krater was stolen just yesterday. Cameras still has no visual on the thief however a note was left behind as a clue to his next target but none of them announced when the next theft will happen._ "

"This is the sixth time now…" Judy said, after watching the news.

"I wonder if the thief is a fox…"

Judy punched him playfully and he laughed.

"Oh come on. It's okay if another fox says it."

She hugged Nick. She didn't care. She didn't want him to be all stereotypical again. Especially to his own kind. She knows that not all foxes are like that, and he was a prime example.

"You okay, Carrots?" he asked, a little concern.

"Just don't…" she said, speaking into his chest.

He knew what she meant and rubbed her head. "Sorry…"

"Turn it off… Please…"

He did as she told him to and hugged her. She gave him a kiss on the cheek, crying a little.

"Come on, Jude…" Nick said. "I was only kidding…"

She still didn't say anything and just hugged him. It took her a few minutes to finally spoke up. "I know… But just thinking about it makes me wonder that maybe you… You might go back to what others think you are…"

"Well, I'm a cop now. That's a change right?"

She grasped his shirt and placed her forehead on his chest.

He sighed and looked up at the ceiling. "I think we better get to better. The earlier, the better right?"

She nodded and muttered, "Mmm…"

He carried her up in his arms and carefully brought her to bed, putting her down and laying next to her.

"Nick…?" she said softly.

"Yea?" he said, turning to her.

"Do you… Do you still believe that… You should be what a fox should be…?"

"To be honest, yes. But like you've said before. I'm more than that."

She spread her arms out. "Hold me?"

He smiled and chuckled. "You sure are being a big baby today." But he did anyway.

The two just lay there, hugging each other closely. Nick staring blankly on his end, thinking. As for Judy, she was just holding on to Nick. She didn't want him to go back to where he thought he was something he's not. She knows that he's more than that but she just can't shake the thought that maybe, just maybe he might go back to being what he was before.

Eventually the couple fell asleep in each other's arms.

Later that night…

A shadowy figure looked on at a building with a sign that says, 'Rare Fruits Exhibition'. He put on his hood, setting up his mark.

"Time to make some money…" he said.

* * *

 **A/N** : _There you have it. Chapter 1 done. Chapter 2 might take a while. As I've said before, I decided to write this before my test begin because just think of it as a thanks from me to all of you. I've been keeping this story in my head for days now and I was afraid that it might go blank after my driver's test. So I hope you all enjoy. Sorry if there was any grammar mistakes. I'm just in a rush now._

 _Wish me luck in the test. Ciao._


	2. New Recruits, Mysterious Fox

**A/N:** _Tomorrow's the day of my driving tests. Last time I talked about it was to see if I was elligible to drive. Now that I've passed that part of the test, I've been studying. And I've just finished studying too so I thought I'd write this at the last second. Better not waste anymore time. Let's go._

 **Disclaimer:** _Zootopia and all its characters (except for my own) belongs to Disney._

* * *

The next day at the ZPD, every officers were at the bull pen waiting for Chief Bogo to come in. Judy and Nick saw the usual thing: Big animals arm wrestling, talking loudly, yada yada yada.

But they also noticed someone else. There were two new officers. They both look like… Wolves or dogs… One had a tannish black fur with a bushy tail and the other was a blackish brown one also with a bushy tail. They were sitting in front, right next to the couple's seat.

"Hi there!" Judy was the first to greet with a smile.

They turned to her and just stared.

"I'm Officer Judy Hopps and this is my partner," she brought out her paw to shake.

Nick smiled. "Officer Wilde," he simply introduced.

The new officer smiled back.

"Well, well," said the tannish black one. "Great to finally see a fox around here." Instead of shaking Judy's paw, he shook Nick's. "Name's Jake McGold. A jackal. And the one next to me is my partner, Darren Wile. A coyote."

"Whoa ho," Nick commented. "Never met any of your kinds before."

"Same here. We've never actually seen any foxes here."

Judy stared at the two and butted in. "So, you two new here?"

"Oh yea. We moved here like a week ago. Moved from Canide Town because of… The Modern Robin Hood."

Judy glanced at Nick. "So you two know about it?"

"It actually started all the way back at Canide Town. Didn't think it would be in Zootopia today."

Nick stared at the coyote. "You don't talk much, do you?"

Darren snarled and looked straight on.

"Don't mind him," said Jake. "He's just shy when it comes to new animals. This is the fourth time that we've moved to another department too."

"Was the Modern Robin Hood really that good?"

And just after her question, Chief Bogo entered and all the animals started growling just as they did every morning.

"Alright, alright," the Chief said. "Shut up!" And they all did as they were told. "There are two things that are on the lists. Number one, we have two new recruits. But who cares?"

Nick chuckled. "Don't worry about it. It's just what he does to the new guys."

"Number two, the Modern Robin Hood just appeared again last night. This time, the Fruit Exhibits. And has stolen the Golden Apple."

The officers in the room started talking to each other. It was the seventh time in only two weeks.

Nick yawned afterwards and Judy noticed this. "Not enough sleep?" she whispered.

"Oh no," he whispered back. "It was enough but… Just barely."

"Nick, we've talked about this. There's gonna be curfew if we're gonna live together."

"Assignments!" the Chief announced which made Judy's heart jumped and paid close attention. "Officer Wolfard, Fangmire, Delgato, Tundratown Bank. Officer Higgins, McHornn, Rhinowitz, Downtown Museum. Officer Hopps, Wilde, Fruit Exhibit. And lastly, the two new recruits, Officer McGold, Wile, city patrol. Find any clues or leads as to where this so-called Robin Hood is and make sure you all apprehend him. Dismiss."

The officers salute and leave the room to their station.

"Hey, Wilde," Jake said. "How about after work you show us around? Would be nice to see the city with the first fox in the force."

"Oh, um…" Nick rubbed the back of his head. "I got plans. Sorry."

"Ah, I see. Well, can't blame you."

"Nick! Come on!" Judy called.

The bunny and fox arrived at the exhibit and were scavenging for clues all around the place. Judy was asking the securities if they have witnessed anything suspicious during the night or the day before. Whereas, Nick was snooping around at every nooks and crannies he can find.

He looked at the cameras to find the perfect angle to where the blind spots could and scratched his head.

"Looks like we got nothing," Judy said, coming towards Nick.

"No kidding," Nick replied. "There are cameras at every angle. I guess everyone must really be afraid of this new Robin Hood stealing their stuff."

"Isn't Robin Hood suppose to be the good guy though?" Judy tapped the end of her pen on her chin.

"Steal from the rich, give to the poor. I'd say that's pretty much a good guy thing."

"So… If we can find any place where animals aren't wealthy, we might be able to find a lead."

"It's Zootopia, Carrots. No one here is poor. And even if there is one place that is poor, I couldn't think of anywhere else where that would be."

The two partners thanked the animals of the exhibit for their time and head out to the city.

And then, a thought struck Nick. "If I remembered correctly… I think Robin Hood was a red fox."

Judy quickly nudged. "Nick… Stop it…"

"I know, I know. But… What if this Modern Robin Hood only called himself that because he was a fox?"

The bunny's ears dropped when she remembered something. "Wait… What did Officer McGold said to you after we left the room?"

"He told me if I can show the city around for him and his partner."

Judy thought for a second. "And he was surprised you were a fox too…"

It took Nick a while to process that and he finally understood what she meant. "You mean… He's suspecting me…?" Nick looked down, ears dropped.

Judy stared at him and she hugged him. "I know you're not like that, Nick…" she said. "I trust you…"

He hugged back. "I know," he said softly. He leaned back in his seat and sighed. "You know… We aren't suppose to be lovey-dovey during work."

Judy's eyes widen and quickly pulled away. "Th-that was because it was an emergency!" she said blushing.

He chuckled. "Sure," he said sarcastically.

She looked away, looking all furious, but on the inside, she was smiling. She wanted to be close to him whenever Nick starts to doubt himself.

"Hey, Carrots," Nick called, shaking her shoulders. "Can you go buy me a pawpsicle?"

She looked at him. "Why not you go yourself?"

"Too sad…" he said, sounding sad.

She punched him playfully which made him laugh. "Alright, fine," she said before leaving the car.

"And make sure it's blueberry!" Nick reminded.

Luckily the ice-cream parlor is just right around the corner. She could use the break for now too.

"Two pawpsicles? One cherry and one blueberry," she ordered.

"Oh… Sorry…" said the cashier, a pig. "But we're all out of pawpsicles. We have ice-cream though."

"But, my partner and I always go for pawpsicles."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but a customer bought all of them."

"Who?"

"That guy who just left." The pig pointed out the door right before the customer was out of sight.

Judy chased after him. Luckily she saw what he was wearing before he turned the corner. A grey hoodie with the hood up and tan colored cargo pants.

"Excuse me!" she called out but the animal kept walking. "Sir! Please stop!"

She grabbed on his arm and he quickly turned to face her. He looked down at her and put his hood down.

She felt intimidated for a reason. He was… A fox.

The fox then removed his earphone. "Yes, officer?"

"Oh, you were listening to music. My bad."

He shook his head in annoyance. "Can I help?" he said, sounding annoyed.

"Um, yes. You see, I was just about to buy a couple of pawpsicles and… I thought maybe I can have them? I'll pay even."

He glared at her. "What flavor?"

"Uh… Cherry and blueberry."

He looked into the bag and gave them to her. "Here."

It was what she asked for. Blueberry and cherry. She took them nervously and thanked him. "How much is it?" she asked looking into her wallet. And just when she looked up at him, he walked away from her.

She kept quiet and thought. There was another fox in Zootopia… And not just any fox, but a red fox too. She remembered what Nick said about Robin Hood. And she immediately thought about the fox she just met. She decided to tail him to see where he was going.

He kept walking and walking to a place she's never been before, Flock Street. The streets were cold and barely anyone was in this district. As she followed him, he finally made a stopped and faced a flat before him.

The fox knocked on the door and waited for an answer. He tapped his feet until finally the door was opened by an old tigress.

"Oh, Max!" she said in surprised. "So good to see you finally!" The tigress hugged him with all her might.

"Argh! And you're still quite the hugger, Miss Tigerly!" he said being crushed by her hug.

Judy's ears dropped when she witnessed this.

The tigress let him go. "How long has it been?"

"Too long," said the fox who is known as Max as he removed his hood. He was smiling even. He offered her the bag full of pawpsicles. "Here. Bought something for the kids."

"Oh for heaven's sake, you don't have to…"

"It's fine, Miss. After all, I owe you all for such a long time."

"Miss Tigerly, who is…" said a young jaguar coming up behind her. He stopped midsentence when he saw the fox. He smiled and called out to the others. "Guys! Max is here!"

So many young animals all rushed towards the fox and gave him a hug.

"Whoa, easy there!" he said, laughing and rubbing their heads.

Judy once again, misjudged a fox. It was like how when she saw Nick the first time.

Max carried up a baby giraffe. "Look at you," he said measuring his height. "You're much taller than before."

There were so many kids of all different species around him and he calmed them down with pawpsicles. The all cheered in joy as they all got one each.

Max's smile slowly vanished. "I'm sorry, everyone," he said. "But I have to go now."

"Why?" said a baby racoon. "You just got here."

"I know," he said, rubbing the racoon's head. "But I have work. One day, when I actually have the time, I'll play with you all like old times, okay?"

"Okay…" they all answered, looking down with all their ears dropped.

Max on the other hand can't help but hug all of them. "I'm really sorry…" he said. "But I promise. I did keep my promise of being back right? So I'm gonna keep my promise that we'll play soon."

They all smiled slowly and hugged him back.

He stood up and waved goodbye to the kids and the old tigress, putting on his hood. And as he walked away, he stopped when he was right next to the alley where Judy was. "You saw…?" he said.

Judy slowly came out of shadows and just kept quiet.

"Just don't tell anyone…" he said. "Please."

"Why not?"

"The other animals will think I'm up to something with that orphanage."

"Orphanage…?"

"Yea," he said, turning to her. "It's not official either so if anyone finds out about it, that place has to go down. And also, I grew up in that place…"

Judy looked back at the flat at where he was at just now and then at him. "What happens if I do tell someone?"

He clenched his fist and looked down.

She noticed that he was wearing something else. Gloves. Leather too. She was starting to get suspicious of him.

"Just don't…" was all he could say. "No one would believe a fox… Even if I try to help them, they would still think I'll be up to something. So what's the point asking for help?"

Judy's ears slowly lifted themselves. He was just like Nick. What's more, a fox who believed that he is nothing more. Judy sighed.

"You have my word," she finally answered.

He looked at her.

"A good cop should do the right thing and… Seeing that those kids had nowhere else to go, I think it's best I keep it to myself."

He stared blankly at her and approached her slowly, taking off his hood.

She didn't move as she looked up at him. Blushing.

He then caressed her cheek which made her shiver. She was frozen at her track. He then took a sniff at her and pulled back.

"You know," he said. "If you weren't taken, I'd probably wanna ask you out."

Her blush turned redder and she laughed nervously. "Ah ha, well, I'm flattered really but…" It took a while for her to realized something. "How… Did you know I wasn't single?"

"The scent. I can just tell by it. But…" He looked at her carefully. "There's something odd about your scent…"

She gulped as she felt her heart skip a beat. She was confuse at this feeling. It's almost as if she's revisiting those moments she had with Nick. And to top it of, it was a red fox just like him. But she knew that Max and Nick are two different person and shook her head from the thought.

"I…" she said backing away. "I really should get going… I'm sure my boyfriend's worried sick about me."

He smiled at her which made her surprised even. "Well, you better. Don't keep your lover waiting, officer." Afterwards, his phone pinged when he got a text message. "As for me, I need to get back to work. See ya." He waved her goodbye and went on his way.

She turned away from him and walked slowly. " _Uwaah! What am I doing?!_ " she thought, blushing. " _I'm with Nick now! Why would I feel that way?!_ _Maybe it was because it was like that moment with Nick… Nothing more…_ " She sighed, looking up at the sky before running towards her partner.

Nick was still in the car, texting his old friend. He yawned in boredom and looked up at the roof. " _Where the heck are you, Carrots?_ " he thought.

Just when he thought of that, she entered the car quickly and panted.

"Took you long enough," he said sitting up. He noticed how heavy she was breathing. And… How red her face was. "You okay, Carrots?"

"Huh?" she quickly respond. "Oh uh, yea." She handed him his pawpsicle.

He looked at her. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing," she answered quickly, putting the pawpsicle in her mouth even though it was still unwrapped.

"So, eating an unwrapped pawpsicle is nothing?" Nick joked.

She stayed quiet for a minute and hugged him quickly. "I love you, Nick…" she said softly.

He looked at her in confuse and hugged her back. "I love you too. But why the sudden burst?"

She didn't say anything and just hugged him tighter. He shrugged and just let her do what she was doing. He patted her on the back and sighed. " _What has gotten in to you?_ " he thought.

* * *

 **A/N:** _There you have it. Chapter 2. While studying, I've been thinking of how to introduced my OCs and I'm pretty proud of how I did it. So we have Officer Jake McGold and Darren Wile. Both partners from a place call Canide Town. And finally Max, my main OC. Hope you guys enjoy. And please… Just please. DO NOT SHIP MAX AND JUDY!_

 _Max's appearance will be in my tumblr. Anyway, wish me luck for the test._


	3. Lead

**A/N** : _Finally passed the test. Barely that is. Only two more tests to go till I can get an official driver's license. And it starts in 2 days. But I can never leave this story hanging so I might as well turn in chapter 3 now. Anyway, one of you asks about Max's description so here it is._

 **Max's description** : _Brown eyes. Black ears (_ like his whole ears are black _). Has a scruff of fur on his head (because_ he doesn't comb his fur _). Fangs are visible. Tip of his tail is black. Always wears his black leather glove. Usually seen wearing different color hoodies with cargo pants when outside. Eats chocolate when bored, especially Catbury (_ Cadbury _) brand. Loves a lot of 60s to 90s songs. (_ There's actually more but I don't wanna keep it too long. _)_

 **Disclaimer** : _Some characters are mine and does not belong to Disney. But Zootopia and most its characters belongs to Disney._

* * *

After the couple's break, they handed in their reports to the Chief. But just like the rest of the officers, not a single one had a clue about this new Robin Hood. All the places he has robbed and steal. Yet, nothing. No footprints or pawprints. Nothing.

The chief sighed and facepalmed. "Sixteen police officers against one thief," he said. "And in only two weeks, the animals have already been paranoid."

"Sorry, Chief," Judy said. "There really was nothing there. We'll keep trying."

Bogo stood up from his seat and looked at the map of Zootopia, and the places that has been robbed and stolen. All those valuables were symbols of Zootopia and the chief was taking pride in it too. And now that they're gone, he was desperate to actually catch the thief.

"Chief," Judy continued. "I'm sure we'll get him. Just wait."

He sighed again. "I hope so…"

Nick spotted a small note on the Chief's desk and took it. "What's this, big guy?" he asked showing the piece of paper.

The chief turned to him. "Oh that? That paper doesn't make any sense." He returned to his seat.

On the note, were numbers written on it: "Next target: ( _2_ 777 8) ( _4_ 2 555 555 33 777 999) in ( **3** ) (3 2 999 7777)"

The couple looked at each other and frowned.

"It says, 'Next target'. So I assume it maybe a hint to where he's going for next."

"Can we keep this?" Judy asked.

"Be my guest. I have the previous ones that he left before but already gave one to some of the officers."

Two days have passed with still nothing and Judy was looking at all the case files at night while Nick was lying down on the couch, texting his old friend.

The bunny cop carefully looked at the pictures of the surveillance cameras over and over again. Then at the note with the numbers on it. She groaned in frustration and puts the files down angrily.

Nick glanced at her. "Still nothing?" he said.

"This Robin Hood thing is really taking too long…" she said, rubbing her eyes.

Nick sat up straight and rubbed her shoulders, making her relaxed a bit.

She looked back at him. "Thanks…" she said softly, smiling at him. "Nick?"

"Hm?"

She handed him the note with numbers. "Do you actually have any idea to this note?"

He took it and examined carefully. "I know one thing."

"What's that?"

"That I'm not good with math."

She groaned again in annoyance. He laughed and kept massaging her.

"But hey," he continued. "I'm sure your detective instincts will pop one up eventually."

She chuckled. "Yea…" Her eyelids slowly got heavier and she yawned.

"Looks like someone's sleepy."

She just moaned at Nick's paws still massaging her and slowly drifted to sleep. He stopped and carried her to their room, putting her down on bed. He looked at the time on his phone.

" _Ah crap_ ," he thought. He gave a kiss on her head and tucked her in. "I'll be back as soon as I can, Carrots," he said softly before leaving the house.

The next day came, and the headlines has already made it: "VORA LISA STOLEN BY MODERN ROBIN HOOD".

The bull pen was full with conversations. Not just the bull pen but the whole ZPD itself were talking about the subject. Once again, this Robin Hood has stolen something that belonged to the city of Zootopia and this time the Vora Lisa (Mona Lisa) which was a national treasure to the residents.

Judy can't even hear herself think. Especially with her long ears, she could hear everyone talking about it. Nick then offered her a couple of earplugs. She took them and put them on. Silence and she sighed.

"Hey, Wilde," said Officer McGold that just entered the bull pen. "You heard?"

He just nodded. Nick was still worried. On his mind, he was really thinking that the two new officers were suspecting him. Judy on the other hand, just sat back with her eyes closed, enjoying the silence.

"Pretty weird, huh? By the way," He sat next to Nick. "What were you doing last night?"

Luckily, Nick didn't have to answer that because Chief Bogo entered right on time. The fox sighed in relief and nudged his bunny partner which she immediately removed the plugs.

Unlike their usual meeting, the officers kept quiet this time. They were taking the case seriously.

Chief Bogo sighed. "Last night…" he said. "The Vora Lisa was stolen by this, 'Robin Hood'. OUR national art, stolen by this so-call hero."

Silence at first then McGold raise up his paw. "Chief," he said. "What if this 'Robin Hood' is not one but a group."

"What are you saying?"

"Officer Wile, my partner and I have been on this case for years now. And we were even moved here when the Robin Hood case was heard in our previous department." McGold stood up and handed him some files. "These were something you should know about by now."

Bogo thoroughly looked through the files.

"We have witnesses saying that this Robin Hood which first appeared in Canide Town had blue eyes and a muzzle. The muzzle he wears has a microphone in it, allowing to change the voice anytime when put on."

Wile took the file from the Chief's paws and put a picture on the board.

"First up," McGold continued. "In Canide Town, the height of the first Robin Hood was about 4'5", slender body with a bushy tail. We even manage to get ahold of his fur. It belonged to a fox."

Nick and Judy stared at each other in disbelief.

"The second, in MossVille, witnesses say that he was about 5'3" tall with brown eyes. Only this time, his body size was a bit larger and he moves a little slower. But most of the residents see him as a hero so we have not much info however."

"How come you two have not report this to me before…?" The chief was starting to get annoyed.

"The fact, that we just started here in Zootopia, we just wanna confirm if everything is as it matched. The proof was that note that was left during the scene was needed to confirm that this 'Robin Hood' was here. Sir, with all due respect, we have been following this case for the pass 7 years and we will not stop until we get him."

The chief glared at the two new recruits at first but sighed. "Continue," he asked.

"You should also know this Chief, we capture a Robin Hood ourselve on the fourth case."

Everyone in the bull pen started talking and were in disbelief. Then Officer Wile placed a picture of a brown fox in an interrogating room.

"Meet Lucky Greene. About 4'9", slender body. But green eyes. He came to us and admitted he was Robin Hood himself. He turned himself in and admitted that he was the culprit for the Robin Hood case in Acacia City. However…"

Wile put a picture of the brown fox on all four legs, and he looked… Savage.

"When he was about to come clean, he went savage all of a sudden. Because of that we had to put him in quarantine."

"Is it possible because of some Night Howlers? Officer Hopps and Wilde have solved this case before."

McGold chuckled. "I wish," he said. "There were no stains or scent of Night Howlers anywhere. But we know one thing. He was gone after a few days in quarantine. No signs of escape except for scratch and bite marks."

Wile put the pictures back in the files.

"All we can be sure is this," McGold went on. "Maybe Robin Hood is a group of thieves that are all foxes." As soon as he finished that sentence, the jackal eyed at Nick.

Nick noticed this and looked down.

"You can be sure?" Bogo interrupted. "I don't want you to be sure! I want confirmed answers only!"

"That will take time, Chief. Isn't that right, Wile?"

Wile just snarled.

Bogo sighed. "Very well… But how do we know if he's on the move?"

"This Robin Hood change places every time when a piece of evidence is found. It has happened before so it's likely that if any of us finds any evidence, he will be moving again."

"So we are suppose to just wait until all of us ruined?!"

"Not necessarily, sir. He DID leave a clue. So far, not a single one of us has any idea."

Chief Bogo sighed again only heavier. "I've heard enough…" He handed them their assignments. "You two, art gallery then." As soon as the two new recruits took their leave, he turned to the other officers. "The rest of you, undercover. Better to have more surveillance."

They salute their chief and went on their way. Nick and Judy stayed though and walked up to him.

He looked at Nick. "Wilde…" he said. "I'm sorry you have to hear that."

He raised up a paw. "I know, I know," he said, sounding okay with it. "But I'm sure they'll realize not all foxes are sly and shifty."

The Chief chuckled and handed them the note that was found in the Art Gallery. "Here. I hope you two still have a clue to what this means."

This time, the note read: "Next target: ( _8_ 44 33) ( _3_ 444 2 6 666 66 3) ( _6_ 88 7777 33 88 6) (666 333) ( _6_ 999 8 44 777) in ( **4** ) (3 2 999 7777)"

As soon as the two left the room…

"Hey, Wilde," Officer McGold and Wile walked up to him from behind as he turned to them. "Like I said, where were you last night?"

Nick's ears dropped and stayed silent for a while. Judy on the other hand got in between them. "Sir, I'll tell you this," she started. "Nick is trustworthy, loyal and he is no criminal."

"Was he one before?"

"Well…" her ears dropped as to not know what to say.

"Yes, I was," Nick answered. "But that was a long time ago."

The jackal chuckled. "I'm keeping my eye on you, fox," he said before leaving the ZPD with his partner.

Judy placed a paw on his arm. "Nick…"

He smiled. "Doesn't matter, Carrots. At least everyone here trusts me. They're just new after all."

She smiled and hugged him. Nick truly has changed a lot. He use to be easily offended when the other animals were smack talking him. Now, he has friends to back him up. And what's more, a girlfriend that means the world to him.

"We should start undercovering," he reminded.

"Oh yea," she pulled away slowly. "I forgot."

Nick and Judy had to go their separate ways on this one to keep an eye on everyone in Zootopia. The police officers were wearing regular clothes to not raise any awareness to the culprit. They were watching carefully, all splitting up, walking in every corners and alleys.

Judy however, was being a meter maid. She was enforcing the parked cars and keeping close eyes at the same time. Considering that she was a bunny, she thought maybe the culprit might underestimate her. While putting tickets on cars, she noticed a line of children carrying backpacks coming out of a bus.

"Alright! Time to move out!" said a familiar cheerful voice. She looked up to see a fox wearing a red hoodie, motioning the children to come out. It was Max.

The kids were all smiling and laughing, walking happily, following the fox.

He started singing along with them while leading. Even the old tigress from before was right behind the kids.

Judy decided to follow them. She still has her suspicions on him. It was like yesterday. He was wearing his black leather gloves again. Something about it seemed rather off to her.

She tailed them for a few minutes and they all came to a stop.

"Stop!" Max announced and the kids did as they were told. "Welcome to you new home!"

Max showed a building with a banner hanging in front that said, "Tigerly Orphanage Centre". The building was huge. It looked like a bungalow and the kids gazed in awe. Judy just watched carefully.

Max opened the gate and let the kids in.

"Well, now, Max," Miss Tigerly said. "This is a bit too much."

"Oh don't worry about it. Luckily it was built just in time too. And plus, there's enough space and rooms for everyone. They have their own bed now."

He held the old tigress' paw and slowly helped her up to the building.

Judy's ears dropped and she followed suit.

She saw the kids running around, some even lying down on the carpeted floor. They have never had a place with so much space before. There was even stairs that lead to their bedrooms.

"Okay, kids!" Max called. "Time to unpack and share bedrooms!"

"Awww," they all groaned.

"Well, I DID say share bedrooms. Everyone at least has their own beds."

They immediately brightened up and rushed upstairs. Max in the meantime, showed Miss Tigerly her bedroom. All clean with the sheets neatly fold. A cabinet was already prepared and a dressing table just for her.

"Oh, Max," she commented. "You don't have to."

"It's fine, Miss." She slowly entered her room. "I'll leave you to unpack. Take your time."

He bowed and closed the door. And as he turned around, he noticed the bunny cop.

"Stalking me again, long ears?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

She smiled slowly. "In your dreams, that is," she said.

"Welcome to the grand opening of Miss Tigerly's official orphanage centre. And see is that it's official, I guess you can let it out now."

Judy entered slowly and looked around. It was nicely build and brand new. What's more, she HAS been noticing construction just a week ago. Now she knows what it was for.

"Can I just ask?" Max said, taking out a chocolate bar. "Did you get demoted?"

She looked at him in confusion. "Excuse me?"

"The other day, I saw you wearing a full cop outfit. What's with the vest?"

"Oh this? It's just my duty for today. Not every cop has to solve crimes. And I'm on parking duty today."

A young sheep tugged on her vest and Judy looked down.

"I wanna be a police officer too," said the sheep.

"Awwww." Judy carried her up. "If you wanna be a police officer then come to me when you grow up. I'll definitely try to help you."

Max frowned and took a bite of his chocolate bar. "Interesting," he said softly.

Judy turned to him. "What was that?"

"Oh, uh nothing."

The bunny put the sheep down and she gave her a Junior ZPD sticker. "This is Zootopia. Anyone can be anything."

The little sheep smiled and walked towards Max. "Look, Max," she said. "I'm a junior police officer."

He smiled and rubbed her head with the wool on top. "Do your best, Marble," he said before offering her a piece of his chocolate before going back upstairs.

"Can I ask?" Judy said.

"Sorry, ma'am. But you're taken remember?"

It took her a while to process that. "Th-that's not what I was gonna ask!"

He chuckled and glanced over at her. "You really are an interesting cop. Very well then. Ask away."

She sighed. "What's with the glove?"

He froze after biting off his chocolate bar from hearing that question. "It's…" He slowly put his paw down. "It's personal..."

Judy's suspicion towards him raised. "Personal?"

"I don't wanna talk about it…" His voice slowly trailed off. He put his chocolate away and turned to her. "Don't ever ask me that again. Please."

At first, she had her doubts. But seeing at how serious he looked made her nod. He was more than just serious. He seemed… To have begged her not to ask.

"Max!" called a cub that was coming down the stairs. "Are you gonna stay and play?"

"Yea…" he answered still looking at Judy.

The cub keeps changing his direction towards Max and Judy. "Is she your girlfriend?"

Judy immediately reacted. "Ah ha. I'm sorry little cub but I already have a boyfriend."

"No…" Max answered. "She's just a cop."

Judy looked at him with regret. "Sir, I'm sorry if I asked something offensive."

He sighed. "Can't say I blame you. I mean, who wears gloves in public all the time, right?"

The cub hugged Max's leg. "Did you do something bad?" he asked, sounding sad.

"No, no," he answered. "She was just asking about something." He rubbed the cub's head. "Go upstairs first. I'll meet you there." The cub smiled and went back upstairs.

Suddenly, Max received a text message. Judy noticed something odd about his phone. It wasn't a smartphone this time like the other day. Instead, it was a flip phone with number pads on it.

"What happened to the other phone?" she asked.

"Huh? Oh you mean this?" He took out a smartphone this time. "I only use this when it's not work related."

"Why?"

"Let's just say I don't want to be interrupted by a co-worker when calling a friend."

As he was texting, she noticed something. The numbers on the flip phone. And the letters on it. An idea immediately popped into her head. " _That's it!_ " she thought. "I guess I'll take my leave. Nice to meet you again at least."

He smiled gently at her. "You too."

Again… That smiled made her heart pound. Her eyes widened instantly when she saw it and she quickly left. Her face was getting redder and she placed a paw on her forehead. She shook her head and smacked her cheeks softly.

" _Pull yourself together!_ " she thought. " _I already have a boyfriend!_ "

As soon as she got her mind straight again, she took the notes that was given by Chief Bogo and took out her phone, setting the typing keys to number pad mode.

She predicted that maybe the spaces in the numbers is to separate them as letters and that the numbers in the brackets were words.

She texted using the number pad with the first note from the other day and she finally got it. It read: "Next target: art gallery in d days". At first, she was confuse. But when she realize that the single number 3 was in bold, she thought it could mean just a regular number. And that the numbers in Italic means capital letters.

She tried again and this time, success. "Next target: Art Gallery in 3 days." The note she was testing was given exactly 3 days before the theft of the Vora Lisa.

Now she tried it on the one that Bogo gave just this morning. She smiled when she finally got it. "Next target: The Diamond Museum of Myths in 4 days".

She immediately called Nick. "Nick? I got a lead."

* * *

 **A/N** : _There you go. Chapter 3, done and done. Glad you all didn't ship Max and Judy. Because I already prepared someone for him that will appear hopefully soon. HOPEFULLY. Anyway, I'm tired. I'll draw one day from one of these chapters. Just not sure when. Ciao everyone._


	4. The Meeting

**A/N** : _So I'm sure you all have been aware that I changed the genre from mystery/friendship to mystery/romance. Because I've been losing inspiration to write lately. With so less reviews... I feel like giving up. I can only think of two things. Number 1, the Wilde Hopps ship is sinking. Number 2, all of you would only read romance genre which is just playing horsecrap. That's why I set it to romance genre._

 _That or because there are new and way better writers than me. But enough female-dogging around._

 **Disclaimer** : _Zootopia belongs to you know who._

* * *

Judy had confirmed the message left behind by the Modern Robin Hood. His next target is the Diamond in the Museum of Mythology. The Diamond. A rare jewel that was found in the centre of Zootopia. Believed to be older before even the prehistoric times when the animals began evolving. Such a gem like this must be protected and to have it being stolen was indeed a crime.

The guards were very aware of this and decided to do some preparations. They decide to put many kinds of cameras with thermal and night vision. What's more, the ZPD was offering to help out. They were going to be on patrol on every angle. Every entrance even the rooftop.

3 days has passed after the theft of the Vora Lisa. Which means that tonight will be the time where the thief will show up. It was getting late and Judy was all suited up, ready for action.

She looked at herself in the mirror with pride. "Time to catch that thief!" she said to herself, proudly.

Just then the door swung opened and she saw a tired Nick entering and slumped himself on the bed, burying his face in the sheets while he groaned.

"Tough day today?" she said, walking towards him.

"You have no idea," he said, swinging his tail back and forth, left and right. "Kinda glad that I get to sleep at night at least."

She smiled and lay on top of him with his tail in between them.

"Carrots. You're crushing my tail."

"Then turn around."

He slowly did as she told him, carefully not to get her off of him.

The two were now facing each other with the bunny on top of her predator. She held his paw and lay her cheek on his chest and moaned at his soft fuzzy chest.

"Okay, you're milking it now," he said, chuckling.

She smiled and looked at him. "Well, it was your fault for taking the day shift," she said raising her legs up and swinging them back and forth.

He nuzzled her and she kissed him in return. His arms slowly wrapped themselves around her. He held her face closely, as his tongue entered in her mouth slowly. Judy opened her mouth a bit for entrance and happily let him explore her mouth.

She moaned and frowned when she remembered that she needed to go and hesitantly pulled back.

"Sorry, Nick…" she said sadly, her ears dropping down. "I got work…" Her paws slowly trailed down his chest as she looked down in disappointment.

Nick hugged her and kiss her cheek. He knew that she would want to continue but, duty calls. "It's okay," he said. "At least we get to see each other every day now. And I've got no regrets moving in."

She smiled and pecked his lips before getting off of him. "Sweet dreams, you dumb fox."

He smirked. "Take care, sly bunny."

And with that, the bunny closed the door behind her leaving the fox to rest.

It was getting late. But the officers were very well aware of the situation. Some even almost fell asleep and were drinking coffee to keep themselves awake.

Judy however, was on guard on the Diamond. It was indeed lucky of her to have actually discovered the answer to the hint left behind. Every minute she would turn to different directions to keep watch. Her eyes were very awake, watching everywhere like a laser when suddenly, she heard a piece of metal dropped.

Her left ear moved and she faced towards the direction of the sound. At first she wanted to go towards it then she saw a fellow officer, a wolf, appeared. He waved at her. "Sorry about that!" he called out.

She shook her head and sighed, laughing it off.

She yawned afterwards. But she doesn't feel tired though. Rather… She was just, drowzy. When she realized that something was rather off, she fell to her knees. Sleeping gas…

She could clearly see the gas being visible slowly. But just could not make out where it came from. She tried to reach for her walkie-talkie when suddenly, someone grabbed her paw and tossed it away from her belt.

She looked up to see a mysterious figure dressed in a green long-sleeved sweater with gloves. He was wearing a black muzzle with a cap under his hood. His pants were long and brown and she grabbed on to it, trying to hold him back.

" _ **Huh**_ ," he said. " _ **Still awake?**_ " His voice really was no ordinary voice. McGold was right about muzzle. It sounded like a computer is talking to her.

She tried to think of a way to get her back up and awake. She looked for something she can find but the only thing she had left was her carrot pen. Wait… The pen!

She took it, gripped on it tightly and took a deep breath. " _This is gonna sting…_ " she thought to herself.

And immediately she did the only thing she could think of. She stabbed her paw with the pen with full force and cried out in pain. This immediately brought the thief's attention.

She gritted her teeth, holding in the pain and was widely awake. The gas even resided which was just perfect for her.

The thief smirked. " _ **Tough rabbit**_ ," he complimented. " _ **You didn't just managed to hang on from falling asleep but would even try hurting yourself to stay awake. I'm impressed.**_ "

She immediately ran straight towards him. He just turned around and with a swift move from his tail, he grabbed her and tossing her like a ragdoll. She was still a little drowzy but very conscience to what was happening. Her mind was awake but her body just can't seem to cooperate. She saw the walkie-talkie next to her and grabbed it.

"Officer Hopps to despatch!" she shouted trying to alert everyone. "I've spotted the Robin Hood!" But all she could hear were static noises.

The thief chuckled as he slowly cut the glass. " _ **Keep trying, sweetheart**_ ," he said. " _ **Everyone already fell asleep before you. As for the communications, I made sure it's been blocked. A thief must always prepare everything just in case, Carrots.**_ "

Her ears dropped. " _Carrots…?_ " she thought. She crawled slowly towards him, trying to take a good look at him. He was about 4 feet tall. He has a bushy tail but it was clearly a fox's. "Hey!" she called out, trying to get him to face her.

He glanced at her and shook his head. " _ **Keep it down, fluff**_ ," he said. " _ **I'm concentrating here.**_ "

Judy looked at the camera which was pointed directly at the diamond. It was still recording. Luckily she was also a witness too. She just needed to get to see his eyes.

Judy tried standing up and taking a deep breath. And afterwards, she ran towards him all on full force again. The thief noticed this and was already preparing his tail. But instead, Judy slid under him, grabbing him by the ankle and dragging him down with her.

And because the thief was carefully cutting the glass, he accidentally broke it when he was holding on to it which tripped the alarm.

He looked at the place which was flash in red and groaned in frustration and then faced the rabbit.

The thief grabbed her by the collar. " _ **You really are one tough rabbit…**_ " he said sounding annoyed.

Judy looked carefully in his eyes. Green…

She thought for sure he was going to kill her but instead, he let her go and walked away.

"Wh-what's the matter?" she said, watching him walk away. "Can't kill a cop?"

He looked back at her. " _ **It's called a hustle, sweetheart. Not murder.**_ "

Her eyes widened when she heard that. The fox climbed back up to the roof using the statues, paintings and pillars as support, leaving the Diamond at its place.

Judy on the other hand, lay back down, exhausted from all the commotion. The gas must have taken an effect much more than she thought it would. She looked down in her paw… Luckily she managed to grab a piece of his fur. Reddish… The last thing she heard were police sirens outside of the Museum before she blacked out. She sighed and slowly fainted.

Her eyes opened slowly and she looked around. The first thing she saw was Nick sleeping by her. She was in the nursery of the ZPD. She looked at Nick and was about to wake him up but remembered about last night.

The last thing the thief said to her… "It's called a hustle, sweetheart." She looked at Nick carefully and he moved a little. She just couldn't bring herself to think that Nick was Robin Hood. But why would he ever do that? What reason did he have?

With all that thinking clouded in her mind, Nick slowly got up and yawned. He noticed her already sitting up and awake. "Morning, Carrots," he greeted, rubbing his eyes.

" _Carrots…_ " she thought. The thief said the same thing too. But she smiled at him. "Morning," she said softly.

"Heard about last night. You okay?"

She just looked down, thinking. She couldn't think of anything else to say to him. He held her wounded paw from last night and looked back up at him. He gave her a gentle smile and kiss her paw.

"Now I really wish I was there…" he said sounding regretful.

Her doubts for him immediately cleared up. There was no way Nick would hurt her. No way that he would betray her trust after all this time. And especially when they're currently dating. She smiled back and held his face, giving him a kiss on the forehead and embrace him.

"I'm sorry…" she said.

"For what?"

"For worrying you…"

The fox pulled away slowly and lay her down. "Should I get you anything?" he said, standing up.

She thought for a moment. "Carrot sticks please?"

He nodded and went to get some for her.

And as soon as he left she looked out the window. It was so sunny. Looked as if nothing happened last night. She was really suspecting Nick to be the thief. But then again… McGold said that this Robin Hood might actually be a group of thieves rather than just one.

And she saw one upclose too. His eyes were green… He was the same height as Nick too. She didn't try to shake it off but instead tried to think of the reason why. Maybe Nick has been stealing without him realizing. He HAS not been getting enough sleep lately. But that was because he was just chatting up with an old friend.

"Alright, I've got the carrot sticks," Nick said, coming towards her.

She turned to him. "Nick?" she started.

"Hm?" He put down the stuff he brought next to her.

"The other day… Before the Vora Lisa was stolen… Did you go anywhere that night?"

"Yea. I went to see a friend. You know, the one I've been chatting with lately?"

"What about last night?"

"What do you mean? I was asleep. Tired remember?"

She nodded and looked out the window again. She sighed. "Nick… Would you… Lie to me? Now that is."

"Why would I do that?"

"It's… It's nothing," she said shaking her head.

He looked at her, frowning. "Are you… Accusing me…?" he said.

She just stayed quiet, looking down. She didn't wanna upset him like how it went with the press conference before.

Nick held her paw which brought her to face him. "Judy…" he said. "You can tell me. I promise I won't get mad."

'Judy' he said… She sighed and knew he was serious this time. "Yes… But…" She couldn't say anything more, afraid that it might get worse. But Nick held her paw tighter, assuring her that it was okay. "But I think you might have done it without even realizing it…"

"What are you saying…?"

She faced him. "Remember that brown fox McGold said that went savage? I think… I think the fox didn't even realized he was the thief before. But that's just a thought. I'm not sure how though…" She showed him a piece of fur that she grabbed from the thief. "Can you tell what fur is this?"

Nick took it and observed it carefully, taking a sniff out of it. "It's definitely a fox's," he said.

Judy looked carefully at the fur and his. They were the perfect color too. But… She knew that there was no way the thief was him. She just can't seem to put her belief to that.

"Tell you what?" Nick said. "How about the next time he comes, I'll be on patrol with you too. That way I can prove my innocence."

She gazed at him and giggled.

"What's so funny?" he said laughing as well.

"Just…" she said, sniffing. "I… Didn't realize how much you've changed…"

He smiled and caressed her cheek. "I never have… I've always been like this… Just didn't get to show it is all."

She held his paw and slowly brought her face closer to his. The two was about to make contact with their lips when suddenly, a knock on the door was heard making the fox quickly pulled away.

Chief Bogo opened the door. "Officer Hopps," he said. "I hope you're doing well." He walked in slowly.

"Ah yes," she said, trying to not blush from what happened.

"I think there's something you have to see." The chief sounded serious.

The couple looked at each other and nodded.

Soon, they were reviewing the security cameras from last night. But rather… Something was strange in the footage.

Judy was seen in the footage but at the same time… Nothing. She was moving and flailing around but there was no sign of the thief.

"What…?" she said in disbelief. It looked as if she was attacked by something invisible. "Chief, I know what I saw!"

The chief wasn't doubting her. It looked too real for her to be faking everything. There was literally no trace of the thief. All they were seeing were Judy being tossed around into walls and falling down. But then again…

"The thermal cameras! The night vision ones too!" she said.

Chief sighed. "I wish I could but…" He showed her what was recorded and it was only 3 hours of footage of nothing. "Those two modes were already shut down right before the theft took place."

Judy's ears dropped and she hit the table.

Nick patted her back.

"However," Chief said, stopping the footage. "You did manage to keep the Diamond safe. So in a way, you stopped it from happening. Maybe we'll even get him soon."

Judy nodded and facepalmed. "I knew what I saw…" she said to herself.

"And we believe you," Chief said. "But I'm sure the public won't. We will definitely get him."

Nick walked her out of the room as she tried to get her mind straight.

"Hopps," called out McGold. He was leaning right next to the wall beside the chief's office. The couple turned to him. "Heard you met him last night."

She just nodded.

"What was he like?"

She just stayed quiet and shook her head. "You know the story… A description different than the rest."

The jackal looked at his partner and nodded. "If it helps, our treat for lunch if you want."

Nick got in between them afterwards. "Sorry, officers," he said. "But this bunny just need some rest."

"And what's a fox like you to tell me what to do?"

"A fox that actually cares for someone he holds dear most."

The two were exchanging glares for a few moments. The other officers were even witnessing this.

McGold noticed every eye on them and backed off with a smirk. "You got guts, fox," he said. He motioned his partner to tag along.

Nick sighed.

"Nick…" Judy said, grabbing his sleeve.

"It's… It's okay, Carrots…" He turned to her. "You should go home and rest up. I can handle it here."

"Are you sure…?"

"Yeah. And besides, I got everyone else to back me up already."

She hugged him before leaving the ZPD.

"Make sure you get plenty of rest!" Nick said, waving at her.

She smiled and waved back at him.

Home… She dropped herself on bed and sighed. It took her a while for her to get back up to her feet and take off her uniform.

And as she did, a piece of paper dropped out of her pocket. She picked it up and noticed what it was… A message from Robin Hood. The same kind with numbers on it.

She quickly took out her phone and deciphered it. Her ears dropped when she read it…

"You know who I am, Carrots. Tonight, I will return for the Diamond. Get hustling."

She clenched the piece of paper. She knew who he was…? There was only one person she could only think of… Green eyes, red fur, fox. And to top it off, the name 'Carrots' and the way he used the word, 'Hustle'.

"Nick…"

* * *

 **A/N** : _Sorry if this one came out rather short. I really am trying to keep this one updated as much as I can. Because of the studying I have to do, I had no time to draw nor write. But that's why I took this time to actually do it. So yeah. Next chapter, will be the revelation. See you guys and gals soon. Ciao._


	5. Answers

**A/N** : _Okay. So apparently you all left some reviews which I didn't actually expected. I wasn't begging for them. All I said was I lost motivation because of them. But that doesn't mean I can't let this story go unfinished. And besides, Saitama lost motivation one time but still kept going with his training. So why should I stop even if I lose it? That and also the fact that I wanna make sure that this story gets done. :P_

 **Disclaimer** : _Zootopia blah blah Disney._

* * *

That night… Judy was given a message by the thief from last night. She was the only one that knew about this and was planning to go toe-to-toe with him. Nick…

She had asked permission from the owner of the museum to let her guard for the night and not telling the other officers about the situation. She was more interested with answers rather than catching the thief now. She just wanted to know how he manage to steal so well but most of all, why did he do all that.

The fact that she was the only one who was left with the message means that the thief wanted to meet her alone. With no one else. Alone…

She stood right in front of the diamond case and looking at it carefully, hoping she doesn't let her guard down. She didn't even get to see Nick right before she left. She was eager to know what was going on. But as she thought before, maybe he just doesn't remember anything about stealing all those precious things.

Her ears moved when she heard a thud right behind her and she turned around. It was the same thief… The one from before.

He really was the same height as Nick. Those green eyes. She could even see the red fur right above the muzzle.

He looked left and right.

" _ **Alone?**_ " he said in that computer-like voice.

She just nodded.

" _ **Guess you're not that much for a dumb bunny**_ ," he said.

She took a deep breath. "Why're you stealing all these… These meaningful things from Zootopia?"

" _ **For a good cause.**_ "

"That is?"

" _ **Zootopia is so rich in many ways**_ ," he said, turning around and walking around. " _ **Rich in publicity and fortune. 'Fortune'… The word I love most.**_ "

"And how is that a good cause?"

" _ **What? You expect me to sell pawpsicles to make money?**_ "

Her ears dropped. He was definitely acting too much like Nick. She slowly pulled out her paw-cuffs.

He noticed this. " _ **Alright now, come on**_ ," he said assuring her. " _ **I'm not gonna hurt you. In fact, you're hurt enough already from last night, right?**_ "

She froze there, looking at her injured paw and then to him.

" _ **There's a reason why I only sent you that message. I feel like you're the only one that can understand, you know?**_ "

"No, I don't."

" _ **Don't tell me you don't wanna help the poor. They need something more than the animals here okay? And I'm doing it for a good cause.**_ "

"But stealing the treasure of Zootopia is a crime."

He sighed. " _ **You see, that's just it. 'Treasure'. And besides, Zootopia is loaded with treasures.**_ " He pointed at the diamond behind her. " _ **Now that. That is priceless. How about this? You let me take the Diamond and you'll never hear from me again. I won't ever steal and leave this city.**_ "

"And what makes you think I'll believe you?"

He slowly walked up to her and caressed her cheek.

She blushed, and swallowed. She looked at him closely and nervously.

" _ **Of all the things I would never do is lie**_ ," he said softly.

It took her a while to think and she sighed after getting answer. "F-fine…" she said.

He smiled under his muzzled and walked past her only to get himself cuffed from behind.

"Is what you wanted me to say, right?" she smirked with him looking back at her.

He chuckled. " _ **Sly bunny…**_ " he commented. He immediately pushed her off with his back and jumped over his wrists, with his paws cuffed in front of him now. He immediately put his arms around her from above and smirked.

She blushed at this and pushed him off. She shook her head, trying to focus. "Don't even try!" she shouted, embarassed.

" _ **Oh ho, don't worry**_ ," he replied. He raised up his paws and showed her the keys to the cuffs. " _ **I got what I wanted anyway.**_ "

She checked her belt and the keys were indeed gone.

" _ **You know**_ ," he said, unlocking the cuffs. " _ **The perks to becoming a thief is that we're always careful of our surroundings. Just like the time with the pawpsicles when we first met.**_ "

Her ears dropped again and she remembered. It IS Nick. She clenched her paw into a fist, trying to think what to do to get him to stop. She believed in him. And now… He betrayed her trust.

He was about to go for the Diamond when she called out. "Nick! Please stop!"

He froze and turned to her. He frowned.

"Nick…" she started. "I know it's for a good cause… But, just please stop. We can work this out."

He walked down the porch. " _ **What are you talking about?**_ " he said. " _ **And how do you know that name?**_ "

"Carrots!" called someone behind her. The thief and her turned to the direction. Nick quickly made his way to his girlfriend.

"N-Nick…?" She kept turning her head to him and thief, all confuse.

The thief however, looked at Nick who quickly embraced her.

" _ **Nick…?**_ " said the thief.

"Back off!" he said, holding her close.

The thief then removed his muzzle which brought a shock to the couple. It was… Max.

"Max…?" Nick said.

Max looked at the other fox. "You're a cop…?" he said.

Nick just stayed quiet and held his lover closer.

Max hesitantly turned around and put his muzzle back on. " _ **Meet me at where we met last time**_ ," he said. " _ **Same place. Same time. Tomorrow.**_ "

And with that, the thief took the rooftop as an exit, leaving the couple alone.

Nick then turned his attention to his girlfriend and hugged her.

"How… Did you know I was here…?" she said, looking up at him.

"The note on the table back home," he said. "The one with numbers."

She gazed at him at first, then smiled while crying. "Thank goodness…" she said softly. She was so relief that he wasn't the culprit. But to think… Max was. And how did he and Nick knew each other…?

The next day, it was around 7 at night and Nick was preparing to head out. Judy was just sitting down and asking him tons of questions.

"So wait," she said. "You're telling me that HE'S your old friend that you've been chatting with?"

"Yep," Nick said wearing his purple striped tie. "Max Zero. He arrived here the same time when we got back from BunnyBurrow. Apparently, the train he took arrived 10 minutes after ours reached the station."

"And… You trust him?"

Nick thought for a second. "I haven't seen him in years… I hope so. Now that I know who he is, I don't know actually."

Judy walked up to him and kiss him on his cheek. "I'm going with you," she said.

"You sure?" he said, hugging her.

"I've met him recently too. And I just wanna ask him a few questions."

"Well, he can be quite a slopper. Even more than me."

"How bad can it be?"

Max was waiting by the bench in the park, waiting for his friend to come. He was wearing a black work jacket with red stripes on and dark blue jeans along to go with it. He was listening to some music, bopping his head left and right and humming.

"Max?" Nick said.

Max didn't actually hear him but rather noticed the scent from Nick and looked up. He removed the earphones and stood up. "Glad you could come," he said. He then looked behind Nick and saw Judy right behind him.

He walked towards her and sniffed her again. Judy was a little embarrassed with the fact that Nick didn't stop him.

"I thought I recognized that scent," he said turning to Nick. "You two are dating. Or at least have slept with each other."

Nick chuckled. "Dating," he answered.

Max smiled. "And you said interspecies was weird before, huh?" The two foxes exchange laughters until Max decided to speak up. "Come on. I know a place where we can talk."

Max brought the couple to a place called Dentou Shokuhin. The three were sitting right in front of the counter next to the cash register. Max then raised his paw up.

"Oyaasan!" he called out. A badger then walked up towards him.

"Oh, Max!" said the badger. The badger was wearing a white uniform with a cap on his head. The two talked in a language that neither Nick nor Judy could understand. Japanese.

Max was already making orders for the couple and the the badger left him to get cooking.

"What did you say?" Nick asked.

"I just ordered bug oden for you and carrot noodles for your bunny," he said. " And don't worry about it. No one here speaks English. Customers can barely understand even. So anyway…" He turned to Nick. "About last night."

"Yea. What was that about?"

"Was it to help the orphans?" Judy quickly interrupted.

"Yes and no at the same time," he answered.

Nick looked at Judy. "Orphans?"

"Remember where I grew up, Nicky?"

It took a while for him to remember. "Tigerly?" he asked.

Max just nodded. "The good news is that now Miss Tigerly's orphanage centre is official. So now they're allowed to live there."

"And where did you get the money?"

"Where else? The stuff I stole. I sold it to some random mammals and they offered. The highest paid ones always win."

"Dude, that is just wrong."

"I know…" he said looking down. "And I'm willing to get myself arrested when the time comes. In the meantime, the kids come first."

"So…" Judy said. "Can I just ask a few questions?"

"As long as it doesn't involve with my gloves, then okay."

"First of, how did the security cameras did not manage to record you in it? That footage of you and me in the museum was by far the strangest. Almost as if a ghost is attacking me."

"Motion suit," he answered. Judy frowned. "Before going into the rooms, my priority is always the security cams. It would take hours for me to find all the cameras and switch them to motion signal. With the motion blocker all over my body, it looked as if the cameras didn't detect any movement from me. And, if you look closely to the footage, you can see it's just animated. But, security footage is always crappy and no one can tell the difference anyway." He laughed.

"Okay, what about the eyes? I saw you had green eyes. I even almost thought it was Nick."

He looked at her with half-closed lids. "Ever heard of contact lens?"

He ears dropped. "Oh…" She sat back down. "Um okay. Lastly, how did you know about how Nick and I met…?"

"Carrots…" Nick whispered a little embarrassed.

Max laughed. "I didn't. I was talking about how you and I met. I thought for sure you know who I was."

Judy then remembered. Just like Nick and her, Max and her met all because of the pawpsicles.

Max just chuckled. "You two really are meant for each other." He looked away. "And the guys back then called ME crazy for falling for a bunny."

Judy looked at him. "Excuse me?"

"Oh I wasn't talking about you, long ears. It was someone else."

"He use to have a bunny friend," Nick said. "But… She…" He looked at Max and shake it off. "Nevermind that."

Judy frowned. She was curious about what they were talking about. They seemed to know each other more than she thought.

"Mr. Zero…" she said.

"Please. Call me Max. I hate last names."

"Um. Okay. Max. Just what…"

She was cut off when their orders arrived. Bug Oden for Nick. Carrot Noodles for Judy. And for Max, rice in a bowl dipped with fish curry.

Max sighed and rubbed his paws. Judy and Nick were confuse with the food. And most of all… Chopsticks?!

"Itadakimasu!" Max said, before digging in.

The couple were trying to figure out how to use the chopsticks and tried mimicking Max. Max noticed this. "Need some forks?" he said.

"Uh, no need," Judy said, assuring him, smiling nervously.

Nick just stayed quiet trying to focus on how to hold on to his bugs in his oden.

He laughed and called out to the manager, asking for some forks. The manager happily gave the couple their utensils and whispered to Max. "Karera wa… Dare?"

Max smiled. "Ore no tomo," he answered. The manager nodded and left the three to eat.

Nick looked at the manager and turned to Max. "What did you guys say?"

"He asked who are you guys. And I said, 'My friends'."

Judy's ears stood up and looked at him. " _Friends…?_ " she thought slurping on her noodles.

After dinner, Max sighed loudly and thanked the manager. He even paid for the whole meal and walked casually.

"Friends…?" Judy said.

Max nodded. "Well, you ARE my best friend's girlfriend. So I don't see why not."

Nick smiled and held her paw walking with the silly fox.

"There's something bothering me, Max," she started. "You seem okay with interspecism."

"That's because I already fell in love with another species before it was legal. But I'm not gonna go full detail on that."

She quickly got in front of him, stopping him on his track.

"You said something about a bunny just now right? And how did you and Nick meet anyway?"

"Oh boy," Max sighed. "You have one persistent bunny there, Nick."

"Nick! Say something!"

Nick laughed and rubbed her head right before he and his best friend walked pass her. "Some other time. Just not now."

She pouted and quickly got in front again. "Okay fine. But please answer a few more questions."

Max raised an eyebrow and sighed. "Go nuts. Or carrots in your case."

Nick hold in his laugh which made Judy glared at him. She turned back to Max. "You said that you steal because it was to help the orphans and not at the same time. What do you mean?"

He sighed and looked up the sky trying to think what to say. "Yes. I steal because it was for the orphans and no, I steal also because it was a job."

"A job?"

"Some guy named Voxroy planned everything. The Diamond and the Vora Lisa are ones that I don't want to. He just paid me to get the job done."

"Can you describe him?"

"Never really met the guy. He always sends me a text message about it using new numbers every time. He's also the founder of the Robin Hood crew."

"Can you explain more?"

"I wish I can but…" He yawned. "I'm actually tired… Didn't think I can finally get some sleep."

Nick and Judy glanced at each other.

"Last question. Why're you so defensive over your gloves?"

Max froze there, looking at her. Nick then pulled her away quick.

"Carrots…" he said. "Don't… Trust me…"

Max clenched his fist and rubbed his knuckles. "I don't wanna talk about it," he said trying to sound calm.

"We'll get going now, Max," Nick said, walking away. "See ya."

Max nodded and took the other way round.

The couple and the lone fox took their separate ways. Judy was still curious about why his gloves are so important. She looked at Nick.

"You know something, do you?" she said.

"I do but…" he said. "I made a promise not to tell. Ever."

And as they kept walking, suddenly, police cruisers came to their direction and stopped in front of them. The first one to leave was Bogo. He walked towards them.

"I'm sorry, you two…" he said. "But you are under arrest."

"What?!" the two said. "For what?"

"For working with Robin Hood," said Wile walking up to them.

"I knew you could talk!" Nick joked. Judy glared at him and he immediately shut up.

"We found footage of you both last night in the museum talking to him and lettting him go. Where is he?"

The two looked at each other, not knowing what to do. Judy wasn't even finished with the case yet. She wanted to know more. About Max's contractor, Voxroy.

"You two were with him just now, weren't you?" Nothing. The two just stayed quiet. "Cuff them."

And all of a sudden, a McBison (McLaren) sped up right behind the couple, almost hitting the officers. The door opened and they saw Max in his muzzle.

" _ **Get in!**_ " he shouted. " _ **Now!**_ "

They quickly got in and he drove as fast he could.

The officers called for back up and chased after the speeding car. The chase continued on the highway and Max drove right in the opposite direction.

"Are you nuts?!" Nick said.

" _ **Yes**_ ," he answered. " _ **But being nuts is the only way to get out of this situation.**_ "

Police sirens were heard all the way behind them with red and blue lights flashing along. Max was driving really carefully but really fast at 120km/h. He looked at the mirror to checked how far he's gotten.

"I didn't know you got your license already," Nick continued.

" _ **I never had**_ ," Max replied.

Judy turned to his direction and her law instinct awakened. "No license?!" she said. "Max you need to get a license if you wanna drive!"

" _ **Well, I don't drive cars only ride bikes, okay?!**_ " he shouted back. And looked into the mirror again and saw that he got far enough from them.

He turned to the right which leads to a tunnel then took a right to another tunnel which said, 'Maintenance D'.

He stopped in what looked like a workshop and parked his car. He got out along with the couple. Max removed the muzzle and called someone.

"Hey, Steve," he said. "Yeah. The car is in a usual place. Maintenance D. Pick it up, will ya? Yea, yea, I know. I'll pay you back. Just please."

"Who was that?" Judy asked.

"My mechanic. And plus, you guys really need to get out of here."

"Why?"

Max showed the news on his phone to them.

"OFFICER JUDY HOPPS AND OFFICER NICK WILDE WANTED".

"Wanted?!" they said.

"Apparently it started this evening. Someone noticed you two and called the cops."

Judy shook her head. "Just so we're clear, we're not criminals."

"Oh please. I doubt a bunny can be a criminal."

She looked at him furiously but luckily Nick managed to pull her back.

"We should get out of the city," Max said. "But not in public."

"Okay, how then?" Nick said.

Max walked behind his car and opened the door leading downstairs. "Follow me," he said.

He led them to down to a subway. But before they went any closer, Max gave them some hats.

"What're this for?" Judy whispered.

"Use your brain, fluffy," he answered.

It wasn't long for them to realize it was just to cover up their faces. Because it was late at night, not many animals were there but Max was very careful to make sure no one sees their faces.

And as soon as they entered the train, they took seats that were vacant and far away from the other animals.

"Where are we going?" Nick asked.

Max leaned back and stretched his arms. "My place…"

* * *

 **A/N:** _Okay so there it is. There's more to come so expect soon. And in case you don't know, Max's reference is in my tumblr. The link to my tumblr is in my profile. If any of you are curious to know how Max looks like, you can see it there. I gotta go get some sleep now. Ciao._


	6. Laying Low

**A/N** : _Apparently I got a mix of hate and love for Max. Nice. Just what I wanted. Because I created Max to be split with hate and love. And I was actually satisfied with all your responds. And because of that, here are some more details about Max. Oh and to the guy that told me not to put brackets anymore. NEVER! I have to because a few of my readers might not actually get it. Sorry, man._

 **Max's description** : _An otaku and otoku. Speaks Japanese a little because of anime and video games. Can't read Japanese though. Spends his free time watching anything from Japan with subs, playing Pokemal (Pokemon) on his gamefox (gameboy) or reading manga while eating chocolate._

 **Disclaimer** : _Zootopia -_ _Disney_

* * *

The train has been going for hours. It has stopped at station after station. Judy and Nick were really curious at where they were going. Every time the train stops, Max would hold them back, saying that they haven't arrived yet. Eventually the couple fell asleep on the third stop.

Max however was keeping his eyes open eating his chocolate bar, while playing his gamefox.

" _NOW ARRIVING: LOS HORSERUS_ "

Max looked up and nudged Nick and Judy. They opened their eyes slowly.

"We're here," he said, standing up, putting his gamefox away but still eating his chocolate.

The couple followed suit and yawned.

"How many stops did it take…?" Nick said softly, still a little tired while holding on to his girlfriend.

"Eight I think?" Max answered. "I don't keep count. I only keep my ears peel." They stopped in front of a couple restrooms. "You two should go wash up your faces. You look terrible."

Nick and Judy nodded and walked into separate restrooms slowly like a zombie. After washing their faces they got out with their faces almost wide awake.

"You two feel better?" Max asked.

Nick yawned a little but his eyes wide opened. "A little."

Judy however was all awake. "Much, thank you."

"Come on." Max led the way again. "Don't get lost. It's crowded in this place."

"Where are we?" Judy said walking up the stairs.

"Los Horserus. Worst part of the world. But perfect to lay low."

And as they walked out of the subway, the first thing Nick and Judy saw was the sunlight shining upon buildings but just not as big as Zootopia. Unlike Zootopia which has many buildings in different shapes and sizes, Los Horserus only has… Cube like buildings. The normal kind.

They even saw some mammals bumping into each other and are even annoyed at each other.

"Welcome to TrashVille," Max joked. "Where specism (racism), law breaking and murder is legal."

Judy immediately turned to Max. "Murder?!" she said softly but in shocked.

"Yep. Every animals here does not give a bowel and are very stereotypical so it fits well with me here."

There were animals wearing so many different kind of clothes and some even looked like a public gang. Most dressed with glasses and scarf with a polo shirt while texting or taking a selfie. The hipster kind. And some wearing leather jacket in a group with their big bikes.

One of them even eyed the three and Judy looked away.

"Don't try to stare at anyone," Max said softly. "They're just looking for a fight."

The three made it to a junction and the couple stopped but Max kept walking even though the stoplight was flashing yellow.

"Max!" Nick called.

"Hey, get out of the road fox!" said a zebra driver.

Max just motioned at him to shut up before Nick and Judy quickly got him off of the road to the other side as the vehicles finally get to continue moving.

"What the heck, Max?!" Nick said.

"You can't just walk when the light flashed yellow then red!" Judy scolded along.

Max however kept walking. "That's the point," he said. "In Los Horserus, everyone is allowed to annoy others. But in my case, I do it because it's a hobby."

"So what?" Nick argued. "You're saying nobody here is nice?"

"Why do you think this place isn't on the map? Big city yes, but not well known. Not even the police officers here gives a darn about this place."

As they kept walking to Max's home, the couple also saw a couple of police officers, a wolf and an elephant bringing in a lion into their car. They were even hitting him even though he wasn't fighting back.

Judy wanted to do something about it but…

"Don't try to get involve, Carrots," Max quickly informed. "Like I said. The cops in this city can't even be trusted. Those two are our regular patrol. Speciest. They literally don't care who they taze if you interfere."

She looked at Max. "Sounds like you know this city too well."

"Because I've been arrested a few times."

"For what?"

"Loitering, littering, speaking in another language that annoyed them and more."

Nick and Judy looked at each other.

"I know," Max continued. "These are the kind of corrupt cops they are. They don't like what they see or hear, they'll punished you in every way. And I mean EVERY."

Max then walked towards a huge building that looked like a hotel that says 'Cosmos Towers'.

"Er… Max?" Nick said. "Where are you going?"

He turned to him. "Huh? Like I said, home."

"This is your home?"

"No. Of course not. It's on the top floor."

Judy and Nick looked at each other again in disbelief.

"Yes, thank you, sir and give us a call again," said a female cougar, wearing a pair of glasses at the reception putting down the phone.

"Hey, Jasmine," Max waved removing his hood.

She looked up and smiled. "Max. How's Zootopia?"

He shrugged. "Much better than before at least. But now I got two wanted friends from that place." He introduced the cougar, Jasmine to Nick and Judy.

"These two?" she pointed.

He nodded. "This couple, actually."

She looked at them again. "You two are dating?"

The fox and bunny looked away and nodded shyly.

"Yep," Max helped answered. "Interspecies is legal in Zootopia already too. All thanks to these two."

"No way."

The receptionist and Max laughed a bit at how unbelievable Zootopia has advanced already.

"Listen, you think you can put fake names on them?" he asked.

"Like how I did it with you?"

"Kinda," he said shrugging.

"You still owe me a date for that, you know."

"I know, I know but I still haven't found her yet."

She smiled and already started typing in Nick and Judy's fake name. She then gave them the keys.

"Here you two go," she said handing them over to the couple. "For now, you both are Mr. Rob Vullen and Mrs. Jenny Skeep."

Max laughed at those names. "Still terrible with names huh?"

She looked at him. "Yes, Mr. Harry Dickens," she joked, smiling at him.

Nick hold in his laughter while Judy shook her head in disgust.

"Thanks again, Jas," Max said waving.

"Remember," she called out. "You still owe me that date."

He waved at her again without looking at her.

The three took the elevator as they head for the top floor.

Nick laughed a bit. "Harry Dickens?" he said softly still laughing.

Max just chuckled and nudged his best friend. "At least it's not a suspicious name," he said.

"You two," Judy said softly, shaking her head with her arms crossed. But she smiled anyway because it WAS a little funny.

The elevator has reached the top floor and Max and his guests stepped out. The couple looked at the number on their keys. Room number 1. However, they were only 3 rooms. Room 1, 2 and 3. 2 on the left and 3 on the right with 1 right in front of them.

"Uh… Max…?" Nick said. "Why are there only 3 rooms here?"

Max unlocked the door. "Because the top floor are for penthouses only."

"PENTHOUSES?!" Judy and Nick said in sync.

He nodded and opened the door. The first thing the two guests saw were walls painted in greyish black with the lights on the stairs glowing red. The lights above their heads had red covers with and everything that was made of metal such as the railings on the stairs and the stands for the furnitures are painted in red. There was a couch that could fit eight animals sitting there with a carpet right under and a table in between the couch and a 75 inch flat screen television with stereo system on either sides.

Judy and Nick's ears dropped in awe when they looked at his apartment. They felt the cold air from the air conditioner blew into their fur as they took their first step in. The whole room was air conditioned too.

Max took off his hoodie and hung it on the coat rack then turned towards to his guests. He frowned and smiled. "Too much?" he asked.

They nodded slowly with their mouth barely opened, looking around the place.

"Make yourself at home," he said walking to the living room. When he took the first step down the porch, the first thing they came upon was the kitchen and dining room. Nick went straight for the refrigerator and opened it. He looked around inside.

"Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate." He spotted a box of milk. "Milk." But when he turned it around… He sighed. "Of course. Chocolate flavored."

"If you're looking for blueberries it should be below my chocolate stash," Max said laying down on his couch.

Judy looked out the window. The window was huge. It didn't have any walls at all. Just glass. The view of Los Horserus was amazing too and she gasped in awe.

"A shame that when you're on top of the world, you just don't know what troubles are down there," Max said turning on his stereo and then his TV.

Judy's ears dropped. She had never lived in a place this big before.

"How did you manage to afford this place?" she asked.

"14 years of hard work?" he answered.

"How old are you?"

"20."

"20?!"

Nick nodded. "He was still in kindergarten when I met him too," Nick said, popping some blueberries in his mouth.

"That's not it!" Judy said stomping her foot. "I'm 24 and someone's who's younger than me manage to get to me?!"

Max raised an eyebrow. "24?" He turned to Nick. "She's 24?"

Nick nodded again.

Max looked at Judy again. "Huh. Could have sworn you're younger than you look."

She pouted and Nick laughed. "Come on now, Carrots," he said offering a blueberry. "Blueberry?"

She shook her head and looked out the window again.

"If you two want a bed, you can use mine," Max said, changing the channel. "I only have one bed and I've never lay down on it before. Besides, I prefer couches anyway."

"Thanks, buddy." Nick held his bunny close and led her upstairs. "Come on."

"Oh and also one thing. We're going clothes shopping tomorrow. We need to get you guys some new threads."

Nick sighed. "What are you, a fashionista now?"

Max laughed and walked to the refrigerator to grab a chocolate bar.

The couple walked up the stairs to Max's room. He wasn't joking. The room looked so tidy as if no one has ever set foot in the place. Judy lay down on the bed and sighed. She rubbed her face repeatedly in frustration.

"We're wanted, Nick…" she said softly, looking up the ceiling.

"I know," he said laying next to her. "At least we got a good place to lay low."

Silence at first but then Judy turned to him. "What's Max like?" she asked.

"Well, he's…" Nick tried to think. "He's complicated… He does bad things for good reasons but… Sometimes a little too far. But I trust him. He even let us sleep in his bed, right?"

"Who's this… 'Bunny' you guys were talking about?"

"That's…" Nick looked at her. "That's his choice to tell. Not mine."

"And the gloves?"

"Same answer."

She nodded slowly and hugged her lover.

"Can't believe I thought you were the thief before…" she said burying her face in his chest.

He rubbed her back, looking up at the ceiling. "I don't blame you. Max has always been good with lying and disguising."

Judy stayed quiet for a while, trying to think what to tell him. She then thought that maybe she'd go clean now.

"Nick," she said, looking up at him. "I… I almost fell for him…"

Nick chuckled. "Of course. He's always been good with the ladies."

She shook her head. "No, Nick… I mean, I almost…"

Nick rested her head down on his chest again, trying to keep her quiet. He sighed. "I know. And like I said. He's always got ways with ladies. Remember that receptionist just now?"

She nodded gripping on her boyfriend's shirt.

"But don't worry about it," he assured. "Max is not the kind to get married."

She looked back up and raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying you are?"

He chuckled. "Maybe…" he said softly, sounding innocent.

She giggled and got on four on top of him, giving him that seductive eyes.

The fox smiled and caressed her cheeks. She moaned in his touched and looked at him with her eyes half-closed.

"You look tired," he said.

She smiled and rubbed her paws down his chest making him shiver in her touch. "I love you," she said softly.

He smirked and wrapped his tail around her. She glanced back looked back at him with a smile. "Do I know that?" he said. "Yes, yes I do."

Meanwhile, Max was looking through some files of his previous works while holding on to his chocolate with his teeth.

" _Voxroy…_ " he thought.

* * *

 **A/N** : _Sorry if this one came out short a bit. I literally came home from work and then started writing this. Now I'm tired as hell. I had to drink two mugs of coffee too to keep me awake but I'll be honest, I enjoy writing and drawing. I based off Max's penthouse from my GTA character's. Also, let me know what you guys think of Max and what you wanna know about him. I'll leave more description about him in the next chapter. In the meantime, take care and expect the next chapter soon as usual. Ciao. :)_


	7. Voxroy

**A/N** : _Some of you hate Max and some of you love him. I actually am happy with your answers and reaction towards him. Max was indeed suppose to be half hated and half loved by everyone and I was so happy that I finally did a great job with his personality. Also, because some of you want some info about Max, here it is. Keep in mind, I'm not gonna tell you about the gloves because his gloves will be involved with the story. Sorry, folks._

 _Also, you may have noticed I put a picture of Max as the cover for this story. Full pic is in my tumblr._

 **Max's description** : _Doesn't sleep much. Has a lot of black shirts. He only has one cargo pants that he always wears whenever he goes out. Many colors of hoodies. Not a fox to dress all fancy like suits and ties and all that._

 **Disclaimer** : _Disney owns Zootopia._

* * *

Nick opened his eyes slowly and sat up, stretching his arms. He turned to his left to see his bunny princess still sleeping soundly. He smiled and kissed her cheek carefully not to wake her up. She moved a little and frowned with her nose twitching.

He chuckled softly and got off of bed, stretching his arms one more time before looking out the window.

The sun was rising and it was actually perfect to get the day started.

The fox gave out a soft yawn and walked out after putting his shirt back on. He walked out to see Max sitting on the couch already looking at some files.

"You're up early," he said walking down the stairs.

"Didn't shleep," Max said, holding on to his chocolate bar with his mouth.

Nick sat next to him and sighed looking up at the ceiling. "You seriously need to lay off the chocolate," he said.

Max pulled out his chocolate bar and smirked. "And YOU need to lay off the blueberries."

"At least they're healthy."

Max chuckled and picked up another folder after putting the chocolate back in his mouth.

"What're you looking at?" Nick leaned over to look.

"Some of my old works. Trying to find Vox."

"Vox? You mean Voxroy? Your contractor?"

Max nodded. "Not just my contractor but an ex-partner too."

"Partner?"

Max bit off the chocolate and held it in his paw and chewed. "I told you," he said. "Robin Hood is actually the group's name. We all have our own talents and put them to good use. There were 4 of us. The seeker. The planner. The back-up. And…" He pointed at himself. "The thief."

Nick frowned and listened carefully. "What did you guys do? And when did it begin?"

"Well…" Max leaned back and rest his feet on the table. "It started 4 years after I left Zootopia, I settled in a place called Canide Town. You know how I've been good with stealing and so I did that. One day, I got a call from some mammal name, Frankie. He's got a creepy laugh and chuckle too. He said he know of a way to make some quick money."

"What happened?"

"I took it of course. I couldn't refuse a job like that. He not only contacted me but also contacted 3 more. All predators. Bang, Scope, Voxroy, and yours truly. We all have different skills and use them for each other and ourselves."

"So you know who is who?"

Max shrugged taking another bite on his chocolate bar. "We all live in different cities and towns. When we got a job from Frank, we go to the destination, and meet up with masks. Frank would give us the pinpoint location to where we should meet and left us with some useful stuff to pull off the job." Max took his muzzle and showed Nick. "THIS is one of them. The utility muzzle. A voice changer and oxygen mask at the same time."

Nick looked at it carefully and gave it back. "So how did he find you guys?"

Max shrugged again. "He just called all of us one day and gave us the offer. We weren't allowed to share any information about ourselves to each other even. So we go by codenames."

"And yours is…?"

"Ghost."

"So these guys… Bang, Scope and Voxroy aren't real names?"

Max shook his head putting down a file. "And not just that. We've never seen each other's faces all these time even. Because our deal was, if one of us gets caught, then they won't be able to sell us out. Incognito is the key in our team. But, too bad Scope couldn't go clean."

"Scope?"

"Oh he's a brown fox. Irish. He's the seeker. His eyesight is incredible so he always takes high point to keep watch."

Nick then remembered something. "Did he have green eyes?" he quickly asked.

Max looked at him and frowned. "How'd you know?"

"Lucky Greene then?"

Max nodded hesitantly.

"So you DO know their faces," he said.

"Well, for Scope, yes. But I've never seen the other two yet."

"He went savage before, right?"

"Yep. Quarantined too."

"How'd he escape?"

Max took a sip of his soda. "I got him out."

Nick quickly turned to him. "What?! Didn't he attack you?"

"He was poisoned by Night Howlers apparently."

Nick's ears dropped. "But officers say there weren't ANY Night Howlers."

"There was actually. Because I used an antidote that can only cure animals that has Night Howlers on them."

"Wait. Antidote? How'd you even get that? And how'd you even get into the quarantine?"

"Answer to question one: Frankie gave it. Question two: I stole a doctor's labcoat."

"Frankie gave it?"

"Yea. He's the one that got us together. He called me 5 months ago about it too. So he gave me Scope's location, prepared the antidote at the planned location and left me with the job."

"And the doctor's coat?"

"Oh that? It was in with the laundry and I took it."

Nick thought for a second. "So this… Frankie, what's he like?"

"No idea, buddy. We've never seen him or heard his real voice before. He said that someone's targetting us and trying to get rid of us too."

"T-Targetting?!"

"Yea. Scope should be safe though. Frankie said he'll take care of him. We'll actually get to finally see each other's faces."

"Wait…" Nick looked down on the ground and rubbed the back of his neck. "Are you saying that you've been stealing all those things just to bring attention?"

"Yes and no. Yes, because I wanted to confirm where this… 'Killer' is. Frankie said he thinks he might be in Zootopia but apparently, nothing so far. And no, because I also wanna see the kids at the same time. It was just pure coincidence that I returned to Zootopia to owe Miss Tigerly back for taking care of me and trying to find the crook."

Nick stood up and walked around, rubbing his face.

"Upset?"

"So…" he raised his index finger. "Let me get this straight. You were in a group of thieves and now you believe that all of you are being targetted? And you've been stealing all those things in Zootopia?"

"I wouldn't call them stealing, just borrowed."

"What?!"

Max nodded and turned on the TV.

" _And just like that, the treasures of Zootopia were sent to the ZPD and were returned to where they belong. All of them but the Vora Lisa has returned but the question is where is that last piece of our precious piece of the city?_ "

Max turned it off. "As I've said, borrowed."

"But… The Vora Lisa."

"I know. That's the point. Remember how I said Voxroy contacted me to steal the painting and the Diamond? I told him that we had more contractors and he wanted me to do a job for him. That's why, Frankie and I think that maybe Voxroy was the one selling us out."

Nick just stared in disbelief and covered his face in his paws and groaned. "You… Could have told us that the whole time..."

"In public? I don't think so, pal. Besides, Frankie was right about one thing. Voxroy is in Zootopia and I gotta find him."

"What about the other one…? Fang?"

"Bang. And he's clear. Scope already checked that one out. Frankie already talked about that. I'm planning to meet the guys tonight. You guys might even get your names cleared even."

Nick thought for a second and backed off. "This…" Nick chuckled. "This is… Way bigger than I thought." He looked up and Max. "Tonight, huh?"

"Frank's got a picture of Vox and we're all ready to take action to spring on this guy. What do you say? Wanna help me? A criminal?"

Nick nodded. "You know," he said. "You're more than that Max. You should know. I should know."

Max sighed.

"But we'll help. If you promise to stop stealing already."

Max just shook his head and then grabbed Nick's paw, shaking it. "That's all in the past now, buddy," he said.

Judy opened the door and yawned. "Morning, Nick…" she said.

"Morning, Carrots."

Max looked away and continue to eat his chocolate.

"What have you two been talking about?"

Nick smirked. "Looks like the case is even bigger than we thought."

 **That night…**

It was around 8 and Max brought them to an old rundown factory. The couple looked out as Max parked his car. The building looked horrifying. Especially with the moon in the background and vines all over the pillars.

"Scared?" Max said undoing his seatbelt.

"N-no!" Nick denied.

Judy however wasn't and went down anyway.

The three of them walked into the factory. Slowly, they went in deeper until the place was almost dark, but luckily thanks to Nick and Max's night vision skill, they could still see. Nick held Judy's paw making sure she doesn't get lost and followed Max.

They reached a dead end and Max pulled open a trapdoor right at the end. The door opened loudly and Max motioned the two to get in first. They then walked down the stairs which got brighter at the end of the hallway.

"Frank!" Max called. "I'm here, and I brought…" Max was cut off short when he saw a gruesome scene.

Blood… Blood everywhere… Three bodies, a brown fox, an artic wolf and a hyena sitting on the chair…

Max took off his hood quick and ran towards the hyena. He shook the hyena to wake him up but… No movement.

He looked around the place and saw the dead wolf and fox before him.

His face turning into fear as he looked around. So much blood…

He placed his paws on his head and an image of his past began flashing. He tried breathing to hold himself together.

Judy and Nick just looked at the scene. This was the first time they have actually witness not one murder but three. And Max seemed paranoid about it.

"Max," Nick quickly shook his body. "Snap out of it!"

Max tried to breathe again and slowly, he finally kept his cool and swallowed in his fear. He looked up at the dead hyena again.

He sighed and put his hood back on. "I think I might know which one is Frank and Bang now…" he said softly. He looked behind Frank and saw that the computer was damaged. The CPU was badly destroyed. The insides were on fire, the casing was smashed and every wire was burnt off.

And next to the CPU was a player with a tape in it.

Max took it with his paws still shaking and played it.

Silence for a few seconds… " _Hello, Ghost…_ " said a deep, demonic-like voice from the player. " _Or should I call you Max? Remember the Vora Lisa? Very interesting piece but… It's a shame you didn't get me the Diamond. This wouldn't have happened if we didn't split up. You see, I can't let the secret of the Robin Hood made public. And to have even one member like Scope talked about it, I just can't accept that. Unlike you all, I've been loyal to this team. And now, I have no choice but to get rid of you guys. You see, I learnt one thing: If you want something new, you have to give something up. And I chose, you all…_ " The player ended with the last thing heard were gunshots and groans.

Max gripped the player tight and gritted his teeth. He snarled, mixed with fear and anger deep in his heart.

Judy hide behind Nick, afraid of what was going to happen.

He stood up and closed the eyes of his dead comrades. "I'll get him for you guys… I swear…" He turned around and walked back up slowly.

"Max…?" Judy called.

"You okay, buddy…?" Nick added.

Max stayed silent, and kept walking up. The couple followed him, worried for him. They glanced at each other hoping he'd say something.

As they walked out of the basement, Max stared out at the entrance. Something wasn't right. It was so… Bright outside.

"What's wrong?" Judy said.

Max squinted his eyes to take a closer looked and put on his utility muzzle. " _ **Go to the other side**_ ," he told them.

It didn't take long when guns were fired and the three kept running to the back exit.

"Freeze!" said a police officer with a megaphone. "We have you surrounded!"

Helicopter spotlight flash upon the three. "Over there!" said one in the chopper.

Max quickly stopped and tossed his keys to Nick telling the couple to keep running. At first, Nick hesitated but he did it anyway.

Max turned to the right and the spotlight focused on him instead. He knew that the police were aftering him more than the other two.

An officer from the chopper started shooting at him even. It took a few bullets to miss the running fox but eventually one passed through his right paw.

" _ **Gah!**_ " Max squeezed the bullet hole from both sides trying to stop the bleeding and kept running. He then jumped over a ledge and stopped.

"We got him!" said an officer.

Then, a yellow Cheetarri (Ferrari) stopped right by Max and he quickly entered. Nick was driving it and stepped on it immediately after his friend got in. The car sped up right on the train tracks under a tunnel when suddenly, a train was coming in their way.

" _ **Keep driving!**_ " Max told.

"But…"

" _ **Now!**_ " Max quickly cut.

Nick stepped on the gas and kept going straight for the train. And as soon as the car reached at the end of the tunnel, Max quickly turned the steering wheel to the right, which led them down the sewer drain.

He pointed at a sewer tunnel on the right and Nick quickly entered it, driving normally finally. He looked back. "You okay, Judy…?" he said.

Judy got all dizzy and groaned. "I think…" she said.

Max however was trembling in his right paw. The bleeding was taking it slow but he knew he needs to get patched up quick.

"Where to…?" Nick said.

Max didn't say anything and just set his GPS to the location he wanted. Sheepiyou County…

* * *

 **A/N:** _Chapter 7 done! Wooo! Next chapter will be about Max's past and the reason why he's wearing those gloves. This is the first time I've actually included death scenes inside. Also, if I wrote any grammar mistakes, then please tell me. Because I didn't have time to check. Expect chapter 8 to be out around Wednesday or Thursday._

 _Next chapter: Max's past! His reasons! And the rabbit that he's searching for! All revealed soon! Be sure to be on the look out. :)_


	8. Memories

**A/N:** _It… Is… Time! The climax of the story begins! Sorry it took a while to write it. I was trying to make it perfect. Also, shout out to FantasticOne for the kind review. :)_

 **Disclaimer:** _Zootopia is Disney's._

* * *

Sheepiyou County… A place with 90% of it as desert and the other 10% as urban… Few houses were all low-end but most were all trailers. It is populated with hippies, gangs, illegal businesses and a lot of animals with their own beliefs. Because of how lousy the authority is, almost every animal in Sheepiyou County was allowed to do anything. ANYTHING.

Nick was driving for hours till dusk came with Max laying back down, holding on to his paw, still trying to block the bleeding. When the three crossed the line of Sheepiyou County, the first thing they saw was sand. Sand everywhere. It looked almost as if not a soul lives there. But looks can be decieving.

Max then changed the GPS location. Capra Desert, with an exact location of an address.

"Where are we going?" Nick said, glancing at Max.

Max breathe a little and answered slowly. "My… Safehouse…"

As they reached the main road, the road looked empty. Not a single car was seen driving in or out. Nick turned to the right when he saw a single house in the middle of nowhere. The GPS even directed to him the location. He parked behind the house and the three got out.

Max slowly got out and walked his way up the porch slowly with the two behind him. He went for his keys but dropped it, gasping in pain while holding on to his paw.

Judy picked it up for him. "I got it," she said getting in front of the door.

Right after the door opened, the two foxes and bunny entered. The couple looked around. The place only had two rooms. The living room and the bedroom.

The kitchen was literally the living room and it was all tidy. Judy's first thought is maybe because no one has been to this place in a while. Cobwebs were at the corner of the ceiling and dust was all under and on top the furnitures.

Max went straight for the room and went into the bathroom, opening the medicine cabinet and taking out a bottle of antiseptic and some bandages.

"Leave me alone…" he said softly.

"Why?" Judy said. Nick quickly pulled her back and shook his head. Nick knew very well why he wanted to be alone. Judy pulled off of him and turned to Max. "What is it that's so bad about your gloves? At least let us help bandage it."

"Just… Leave…" Max said, looking up at the mirror, still gripping on to the bottle.

"Judy, don't…" Nick said, a little worried.

"Why not?!" she argued. "We've gotten in so much trouble because of him! A thief! We got answers for the case but the gloves?! Are those really more important than just the case?! Just take it off and let us see the wound!"

She grabbed Max's injured paw trying to remove his glove.

Max gritted his teeth, eyeing her but she was still persistant.

"Judy, don't!" Nick quickly tried to pull her back.

But right before he could, she already took off Max's glove. Max immediately raised his right paw up about to claw her as he growled in anger.

She looked at how sharp his claws were. It's almost as if he's never cut them.

The only reaction she gave was being frozen. She has seen Gideon and Nick's claws before but… Max's was different. There were so… Sharp and visible… Very visible… Even his eyes were almost dilated like a true predator. His fur raised up even as if he was about to… Kill her.

Max breathed for a while and realized what he was doing. He quickly grabbed his glove from her with Judy still frozen.

"Please…" he said. "I can manage..."

Judy's ears dropped. She has never seen a predator so… Savage-looking.

Nick walked her out of the room slowly. "Sorry, Max…" he said.

Max didn't say anything. He just closed the door behind them. Nick then sat her down on the couch with him next to her.

Judy however, still frozen from what she saw. She's seen what Night Howlers can do to predators but this… Max was different. He was much scarier then the infected predators before.

"Max actually has a temper…" Nick said.

Judy turned to him.

"He's… He's more like a predator than any I've ever seen." Nick looked up the ceiling. "That's why he tried to keep himself emotionless and happy all the time. But… I know he means well."

Judy looked down on the ground. "I… I still don't understand… Why the gloves though…?"

"That's for him to tell." Nick caressed her cheek and assured her. He saw something in her eyes. Fear. He hugged her to keep her safe. "He's not gonna hurt anyone anymore. In fact, he doesn't want to."

She looked up at him. "I…" Judy started to sympathize for Max. She felt like she wanted to know more about him. About what happened to him.

The door to the room opened slowly with a squeak. The couple turned to the sound and found Max slowly coming out, all gloved up.

"Sorry… About just now," he said looking down. Silence at first but Max quickly looked back up with a smile. "But look what I found." He showed them a TalkTod (TalkBoy). "Watch what it does." He pushed the record button.

"I just went to puberty and this is my new voice," he said.

He rewinded it and the TalkTod played his voice in a very, very, very deep voice.

Nick laughed softly and Judy smiled. She was so surprised that he manage to recover so quickly. Not physically but emotionally.

"I…" He put the TalkTod on the counter. "I need some fresh air. You two can use the bed if you want. Like I said, I prefer to sleep on couches."

"Thanks, buddy," Nick said smiling. Judy smiled back and nodded.

Max was happy that he was forgiven. But he still needed some time alone to think. He walked out of the house and went to the back of it, looking up in the night sky. He sighed. " _Thank god…_ " he thought. He was actually more worried that he almost hurt someone too.

"Those were some... Really sharp… Claws…" Judy said walking up behind him.

He turned around. "Shouldn't you be getting back to Nick?"

"I…" She looked down. "I wanna know what happened… Nick told me that only you can tell me. And… I respect his commitment to that promise he made to you. So… I'm asking you not as a cop… But as a friend… What happened…?"

Max turned away to his direction slowly, thinking as he looked at the sky.

Judy nodded her head slowly. "Maybe… Next time…" She turned on her heels about to walk away.

"I was violent," Max spoke up.

Her ears sprang up and she looked back, frowning. "What?"

Max took a deep breath and lets it out. "I hurt… A few animals when I was a kit…"

She walked back up to him slowly, taking a few steps.

"I was around… 10. Right after me and Nick went our separate ways to different schools. My parents and I had to move because my dad got promoted. Ever since we left Savannah Central, I… I didn't had a friend for a few weeks."

She stood next to him, looking at him, listening to his story with close attention.

Max closed his eyes, trying to remember every detail of what happened before.

"I would… Sit alone, eat alone, and be alone, reading my manga and… The other animals would leave me be. It was actually okay at first. I was fine not having any friends. But… Every time after school would be over, I would tell my parents that, I had fun with… Friends… That was a lie. I never had any after we moved.

"Then, one day… This… White bunny came. Sophie Glace. Her left ear is always half-bent forward and I don't know what's up with that. But she… She was the first friend I made when coming to that school. I was just reading my manga while eating lunch alone when… She walked up to me with her lunch. I looked up at her, all confuse and looked around. I even thought I might have even sat in the wrong table. But… She just smiled at me and offered me some chocolate… Catbury…

"I don't know what was her problem but, I was happy. We started playing a lot and I even showed her some of my mangas and video games and… She really enjoyed it. I was more than happy. I was… Ecstatic. For once, I was able to be who I really am and not some lone fox who sits alone and thinks to himself that it was better that way. I had so much fun and she became my best friend."

Max then looked down, his smile gone as he remembered the next thing.

"What… Happened next…?" Judy asked.

"One day… When we were playing after school with my GameFox, there was a group of predators walking to us. They were… Massive bullies at our school. They'd bullied preys and would leave a message that predators were in control. That was the one reason why I didn't wanna be friends with anybody.

"They told me to get rid of her because I was a predator and she was a prey. But… I didn't want to. The only thing I did was… Grabbed her paw and we walked away. But then…"

Max put on his hood, not wanting Judy to see his face as he looked down on the ground.

"Brad… One of the bullies, a dog or a wolf I think, shoved her from the back and the others were laughing at her… Picking on her… They even toyed with her ears and… I…"

Max looked away to his left and sniffed.

"I pushed him back, telling them to leave her alone. Brad and I afterwards fought each other… Then the others joined in to help him. They beat me up so bad that I couldn't stand up until… Until something happened to me… I… I lost my mind… I was clawing at them… Biting them… I even almost ripped one of their ears off…

"But… That scared them enough and they ran away and left us alone… I went to help Sophie back but…"

Max sniffed again, remembering the most painful moment of all.

"She… Pushed me away… Crying… I looked at my paws… Then my shirt… And then my mouth… Blood… I… I was a monster… She then ran away from me, crying… I lost the best friend I've ever had in my life…

"When the principal told my parents of what happened, we were forced to move to Canide Town for… Every student's safety. Because of me… My parents had a rough time finding work… The last time I saw Sophie was at school during an evening… She was all alone, sad… I wanted to say goodbye to her but… I was sure she was still afraid of me because of that day… And with that, I left Zootopia without saying goodbye to her…"

He looked at his gloved paws.

"I wore these gloves to remind me not to hurt anyone anymore…" He clenched them into fists. "I don't want anyone else to even see my claws… I… Only wanted to protect her but… Instead, I scared her…"

Judy was so attentively listening to his story. She looked down and nodded slowly. "I see… You just didn't wanna hurt anyone," she said.

Max nodded, stilling facing the ground. He pulled out a bar of chocolate from his hoodie pocket and ate a piece. He offered one to her. "Want one…?"

She saw his eyes all watery. But he was smiling too. She hesitantly took a piece. "Thank you," she said, slowly putting the piece in her mouth. She slowly chewed on it and her ears begin standing straight. It was delicious.

"Sophie really did know which one's the best…" Max said looking up. He sighed. "That's the whole story, long ears." He wiped his eyes with his sleeves and sniffed one last time.

"Max…" Judy spoke up. "I'm sorry if I forced you."

"I don't blame you. But just remember that curiousity can kill you. In your case, almost."

Judy laughed a little. "Was that a joke?"

Max shrugged. "You should get back to Nick. I'm sure he's worried about you."

She nodded. "Thanks for telling me."

"Just promise you won't tell anyone."

"If Nick can do that, I'm pretty sure I can too."

Max nodded slowly and looked back up in the sky.

Judy entered the house, then the room, finding Nick already laying in bed with his eyes closed.

He opened one eye. "Did he tell you?" he said.

She nodded and lay next to him. "Never should have been curious…" she said.

Nick hugged her and kissed her head, holding her close. "He'll heal. He always does. You'll see him smiling tomorrow."

She placed her paw on his chest. "Nick? Would you… Ever protect me the way he does…?"

Nick thought for a while. "I'm no fighter but… I think I would. But not too violent though."

Judy shut her mouth tight and hugged him. "I love you…" she said softly. "No matter what, I always will…"

Nick smiled and cuddled her closely as if they were like two peas in a pod. He was happy with what she said. Because not many prey will accept a predator who would go savage even if on accident.

Few hours later, Max entered the house and sighed, removing his hood. He took off his hoodie and tossed it on the couch and lay back down.

He played with the scruff of his fur on top of his head a little, thinking about Sophie as he looked up at the ceiling. He clenched his fist tight, putting it on his forehead and closed his eyes. "Goodnight, Sophie…" he said to himself before drifting to sleep.

* * *

 **A/N** : _There you have it people. Max's past, his secrets and the bunny he was looking for. It may not be long but I spent a lot of time trying to find the perfect words to describe his past. Trying to be very detail in every event of his flashback. I hope you enjoy it. And because of that, here's more info on Max now that you know most about him._

 **Max's description** : _Loves anything Japanese, modern and traditional. Moved to Canine Town 4 months after he changed school. Starts wearing gloves at the age of 13. In love with the same bunny for 10 years. Parents left the world when he was turning 19, a year before he returned to Zootopia. Makes 600 thousand bucks a day when with the Robin Hood crew. Moved to Los Horserus on his 20th birthday thanks to Frankie. And finally, prefers motorcycles more than cars._

 _I drew a picture of Sophie and Max's first meeting is in my tumblr. The link to my tumblr is in my profile._

 _Anyway, time for me to sleep. There will be maybe another 3 or 4 chapters to go by the way. So hope you enjoy learning more about Max. Time for me to sleep. Ciao._


	9. Reunion

**A/N:** _Max got so many positive comments from last chapter. I'm so glad that I wrote it. I apologize for it being too short but it's just that I really wanna focus on how I should explain his life was last chapter. Anyway, let's get on with the chapter._

 **Disclaimer:** _Zootopia and the characters belong to Disney, but Max is mine._

* * *

Judy slowly opened her eyes and sat up, lazily. She rubbed her eyes and found Nick still sleeping behind her. She smiled and got off of bed, stretching her arms and body.

When she exited the room, the first thing she saw was the back of Max's head, facing the TV. He was watching anime. She slowly walked up to him and yawned.

"What're you watching?" she said.

"One Punch Mouse," he answered. He chewed on his chocolate slowly, focusing on the show.

She turned to the show and realized it was in Japanese. "Can you even understand?"

Max nodded. "A little though."

She then turned her attention to his gloves. He was still wearing them. "I'm sorry about last night," she said.

Max turned to her with a smile. "Daijoubu, daijoubu," he said.

She giggled. "What?"

"It means 'It's alright, it's alright'." He turned back to the TV and watched as the hero tried slapping a mosquito.

Judy was really impressed at how much he recovered. Almost as if it didn't happen before.

"Is Nick awake yet?" Max interrupted her thought. "We're moving as soon as he wakes up."

"Where are we going?"

"Up north. A place in Pantheroma Drive." He took another bite off of his chocolate. "I got a friend that might actually help us. She's a little feisty but she's the only one I know who can get info on someone real fast."

Few hours later after Nick finally got up, the three were on their way to Pantheroma Drive. Nick was actually still asleep at the back.

"So who are we meeting?"

"A wolf. Cheryl. Very talented at getting words out of everyone. Hears a lot too. And charming especially towards males."

"Were YOU charmed?"

Max shrugged. "She can be annoying though. Because I owe her a date as well."

Judy laughed. "How many more dates do you owe?"

Max opened the glove compartment and gave her a notepad. Inside were names of animals with addresses. 6 pages even.

"Whoa…"

"I know. So I think… 81? Some are even from another country so it's even tougher for me to meet up with them."

Judy also noticed that there were male names too. "Even males?"

Max sighed. "Yep. I always keep my end of the bargain. Gay or straight, doesn't matter. As long as it's not a one night stand, then I'm okay with it."

Judy laughed again and puts it back. "How many more do you think you'll have before finding your bunny friend?"

Max shrugged. "Hopefully not 100."

The three arrived at a bar called 'Living Pelts'. Judy frowned in disgust from that name. Max noticed this.

"If there's anyone offering you a drink, just say no," Max reminded.

Judy nudged Nick, waking him up. He quickly sat up and yawned.

The three entered the bar. The bar was such a small place. The counter was literally in front of the entrance and on the left as they entered, was a pool table with a dart board behind it.

The door chimed and the first thing they saw were a wolf and a panther fighting. The two fought each other very slowly from being drunk. They could barely stand but their fists were up weakly.

"Oh, hey there, Max," said a female wolf, cleaning up the counter.

"Sup, Cheryl," Max replied. He watched as the two fought and turned back to her. "How long have they gone at it?"

"Since last night."

"And who won last time?"

"Chester."

Max walked towards the panther and slammed the back of his head to the wall, putting the panther to sleep. He then raised up the wolf's paw. "The winner is Jeffrey," he said. The wolf, known as Jeffrey, cheered in victory, still drunk. Jeffrey then fainted from being drunk for too long and fell asleep.

Judy frowned at Max's action. He walked back up to the counter and she shook her head. "Why'd you do that?" she said.

"Trust me," he said taking a seat, putting on his hood. "If they kept going, they're gonna wet themselves."

"True that," Cheryl said. "What can I get you for?"

"A glass of water for me."

"Um… Do you have any carrot juice…?" Judy asked, her ears dropping.

"We don't got juices," Cheryl replied, cleaning a glass.

"Just give them the same thing," Max ordered.

Nick lay his head on the counter, still asleep, and snoring even.

Cheryl came with their drinks and the first thing Max did was grabbed his glass and splashed water on Nick's face which woke him up immediately.

"Wh-what the heck?!" he said.

"That help?" Max said putting down his glass.

Nick, who was sleepy earlier wiped his face and in an instant, his eyes were wide opened, feeling slightly fresh. "A little…" he said giving one last yawn before wiping his face. Max faced back to Cheryl.

"Give me some soda," he said. "Coati Cola. Bottle too."

Cheryl smiled and gave him a glass bottle one, taking off the bottle cap too. "Now that's the Max I know," she said. "I was wondering why you wanted water too."

Max raised his glass as if he said 'cheers'."So anyway," he said. "Anything you found?"

She looked around and gave him a picture of a beaver. "This guy right here," she started. "James Buckner. He came from Los Horserus last night. Heard him said something about someone leaving the factory right before the police came while on his way to this side of the town."

Max took the photo. "Where is he?"

"Bearstow."

Max sighed. "Of course…" Max turned the picture around and there was an address behind it. He knew what the address meant. He got off his seat and put down his hood. "Thanks for the info, Cheryl."

Nick and Judy finished up their drinks and Max paid for all of them. Including the water he used to splashed Nick's face.

"And remember, you still owe me that date," Cheryl reminded before they left.

Soon, the three got back in the car and began their journey again.

"So what's Bearstow like?" Judy asked, looking at the map.

"Total dump," Max answered. "Residents there are good-for-nothing animals. Very speciest. Corrupted sheriffs. Lousy businesses. But because of that, even the cops from Los Horserus won't dare to come to a place like this." Max pointed at a prison on his left. "That's proof that this part of the world is crazy."

They stopped in front of a train track and waited until the train passed them.

"What's Voxroy like, by the way?" Nick asked, looking through his phone.

Max stayed silent for a minute, trying to think as the train pass by them.

"Well, he's… A jerk towards prey, that's for sure. He was so happy about joining the Robin Hood crew too because all of us were predators. We call him the planner because he plans everything. From what I heard, he works under the government so he had so much better access about the places we were gonna rob. He always seem to have something towards foxes though."

"Foxes?" Nick's ear immediately stood up and he turned to Max.

"Yea… Wonder if he knew I was one already after we got seperated… Maybe that's why I'm still alive till now…" Max clenched his fist. "Dammit…"

The train was finally gone and they continued on.

For a few minutes, nothing. Just total silence. Nick didn't wanna ruin his friend's mood again but Max seem okay with it. Since Max is mostly known as unemotional after what happened with his friend, Sophie.

Max realized how quiet it was a put his iCarrot on the holder and played a song. The song started with an electric guitar tune and the lyrics afterwards begin to come into play. Japanese. At first, Nick and Judy didn't understand, but as soon as the chorus hits, their heads bobbed with the tune.

"You guys like it?" Max said, smiling.

Nick and Judy didn't even have to answer it because their paws were dancing with the tunes anyway.

Max laughed and kept driving letting the two enjoy his taste of music. Max mostly loves the classic songs but he listens to Japanese songs to brighten up the mood for everyone. And surely enough it worked.

After a few songs, they passed a sign that said 'Welcome to Bearstow' and Max turned off the music.

"Aww, come on," Nick said, looking at him. "That song sounded catchy too."

"I'll send it to you once we're free from all these," Max said, driving slowly looking for the beaver.

He stopped at the address given on the picture and parked the car. The three walked up to the house and Max knocked on the door.

"Mr. Buckner?" he called.

The door opened slowly and the beaver peeked out. "Y-yes…?"

"I heard that you saw someone last night in a rundown factory last night on your way here? Can you tell me about this mammal?"

His eyes widened and he shut the door quickly. "Go away! Get out of here!"

Max knocked on the door again. "Sir, please! I just wanna know a few things!"

He opened the door slightly. "Go away, fox!" he shouted. "Or I'll have you reported to the sheriffs along with your friends!" And with that he slamed the door shut, locking it.

Max sighed.

"What's gotten into him?" Nick said.

"Probably afraid of predators," Max shrugged. "But I don't think we'll get any answers if we keep pushing him."

"What do we do now?" Judy asked as the three entered the car.

Max thought for a second and snapped his fingers.

Moments later, they were at a diner. They all sat at the furthest corner with Judy and Nick facing the same way as the entrance. Max however wasn't worried about his face being seen.

"You sure this is safe?" Nick whispered, glancing around.

"Like I said," Max answered browsing the web with his iCarrot. "These animals are lousy. They don't give a bowels about anything. So... Just be prepared about what you're gonna eat."

"What does THAT mean?" she whispered loudly.

Max chuckled. "You don't wanna know. And besides, no need to cover your faces. Almost every TV in Sheepiyou County are cabled and not a single antenna or satellite here. Except that huge satellite dish at Pantheroma Drive, but… Whatever."

"Hi there," said the waitress, a sheep, wearing a pink dress, holding a pen and notepad. "I'm Trixie, your waitress for today. What can I get you three?"

"Chicken burger, please," Max said. "With some locust bits in it?"

Nick and Judy looked at the menu.

"Er… Fish sandwich?" Nick said.

"I'll just have a bowl of salad," Judy said.

The beaver gave them a smile after finishing writing down their orders.

"Max," Nick called. "I've been wondering. What are you gonna do if we DO find Voxroy?"

Max stopped scrolling and turned to Nick slowly. "I'll be honest, personally I wanna kill him. But…" He looked out the window for a while. "If we can catch him and turned him in, at least it'll prove both your innocence."

Nick smiled. "Hey, can I have those songs just now that you played?"

"This is suppose to be scramble?!" shouted someone behind them.

Max looked up and over the couple's seat and saw a gang of bikers, all predators, scolding a beaver.

There was a tiger, hyena, wolf, jaguar and a few others at the table behind them. They were all wearing black jackets with a ram skull at the back.

The tiger than flipped the plate of scramble eggs over the table angrily. "Why are you preys such lousy cooks?!" roared the tiger.

Max saw this and breathe for a moment. He rolled his right paw into a fist, and puts on his hood as he walked up to them.

"Max! Max!" Nick whispered, and covered Judy, hoping the gang wouldn't see her.

"Hey, excuse me," Max said calmly to the large gang of bikers. The turned to him.

The tiger noticed Max was a fox. "Go away, fox," he said. "This doesn't concern you. Only preys."

"Of course not," he said. "Which is why…" Max took out a fat load of cash from his jacket and offered to the gangs. "I'm giving you this, so please leave."

The tiger took it and checked. All 100 bills and it looked as if there was thousands of pieces. He turned to the beaver. "You're lucky we have something else in mind," he said, standing up from his seat with the gang. They all head out and left with their bikes leaving loud vrooms on the way.

"Are you okay?" Max said, offering the beaver a handkerchief.

"Yes, thank you so much," she said, wiping the eggs off of her. "Our cook isn't even a prey and they blamed a waitress for it?"

Max chuckled. "Well, they won't be back for now. Glad I could help." He walked back to his table and noticed Nick covering Judy. "What's with you?"

Judy was squirming underneath Nick and she pushed him away. "Nick! I can handle myself!" she said.

Max laughed and shook his head.

"By the way, Max," Nick said. "How did you… Get that much money?"

"Oh those? They're counterfeit."

Judy's ears stood up, her eyes and Nick's widened. "What?!" they said in sync.

"Relax," he assured. "I only use real money when paying. But no way I'm giving a single penny to jerks like them. Which is why we're leaving the moment we finish up before they come back."

After their meal, the trio exited the diner all full and ready to take on the world. Max stretch his arms and neck from all that sitting down with Nick and Judy doing the same too.

"Excuse me?" said someone behind them. It was the beaver that Max protected just now. "Just asking. Do you think you could send me home?"

"Why?"

"It's just that… Those bikers aren't the only ones bothering me. Especially when I have to walk home."

Max didn't say anything and opened his car door. "Hop in," he said.

She smiled and gladfully got in the front.

"Max," Nick whispered. "You sure? I mean, we barely know her."

"I know. But I feel like she's not a problem."

"What?!"

"Just a feeling. I always trust my instincts."

Max got in the car and start up his engine. Judy however, held Nick's paw.

"At least we'll have the back seat to ourselves," she said to him.

A smile formed on Nick's face slowly and he turned to her. "I guess you're right."

Max drove for a few minutes, listening to the beaver's directing. When they came to a halt, the fox realized that it was the house they visited just now. Mr. Buckner's house.

"This is your house?" Max said.

"Yea, why?" she frowned.

"How ironic. We came to visit someone just now."

"You mean my dad?"

Max nodded. "Do you think that maybe… We can talk to him?"

"Well…" She thought for a second. "I DO owe you for saving me. I guess I can try."

"Thank you so much."

Judy and Nick looked at Max. "Trust your instincts indeed…" Nick complimented, coming down from the car.

They walked up the porch slowly and the beaver knocked on the door. "Dad!" she called. "I'm home!"

The door opened slowly. The same beaver from before. "Oh, Amy, you're home…" he said. He looked up and noticed Max. "What's this fox doing here?!"

"Dad," she said. "He saved me from those gang of bikers. I think it's only fair that we give him a chance to talk."

He looked at Max for a while. "You saved her…?" he said. Max nodded. "Why?"

"Not all predators are jerks, sir," Max answered.

The beaver looked at him in disbelief and nodded. He opened the door letting the four of them inside and closed it, locking it tight.

The place was dark with the curtains all shut. The only light source they have was from the TV. Amy went into her bedroom.

"Dad," she said. "You seriously need to turn some lights on in here." She closed the door behind her and her dad sat down.

"Okay, so what do you wanna talk about?" Mr. Buckner said.

Judy and Nick sat while Max decided to stand, leaning on the wall, with his arms crossed. "Well," he said. "I heard that you saw someone at the factory when you were on your way here?"

The beaver sighed. "I was visiting one of my brothers because he said he needed help with something. But apparently it was nothing but renovating that darn house of him. So I got ticked off and went home. And during my way home, I stopped at the junction by that factory, waiting for the light to turn green. Then I saw someone walking out with a gun. I didn't wanna get involve at first but…"

Max raised his paw to tell him to stop. "It's okay sir. I just wanna know what he looked like."

"Well… I didn't see much. He was wearing a black trench coat and a fedora hat. His tail was bushy though. Black I think. He didn't see me so I just pretended like I didn't see anything."

Max bit the tip of his thumb softly in disappointment. "Thanks for the info at least," he said.

"Er… One question, boy," Mr. Buckner stopped him. "How did you know that I saw him?"

"I have friends that can see and hear everything. Both preys and predators." Max then showed Nick and Judy, who were holding paws and each other side by side. "These two are my friends. And they're dating each other."

The beaver's ears dropped in disbelief as he witnessed how intimate the bunny and fox couple was.

With that, the three exited the house and thanked the beaver for his time. Max leaned back in his seat and sighed. "I thought for sure we'd get something solid."

"What now?" Judy asked.

Just then, Max received a text message from Cheryl.

" _Come to the bar, now._ "

He frowned. "Looks like we got some new info," he said, starting up the engine.

Half an hour later, they made it back to the Living Pelts. They entered in and the door chimed.

"Alright, Cheryl what is it…" Max stopped midsentence when he saw… Him… Voxroy.

He was wearing his utility muzzle with a black trenchcoat. He was holding a gun in his right paw, his left arm around Cheryl's neck and her phone in his left paw.

" _ **Hello, Ghost…**_ " he said in a demonic voice.

Max frowned at this. He always hated listening to that voice. "Still with the demon voice huh?" he said.

" _ **Very funny. I gave you an order… The Diamond. And you screwed up. Big time. So I got another request for you and this time, I'm giving it in person.**_ "

"And what makes you think I'll agree?"

Voxroy smirked. " _ **I'm glad you asked…**_ " He let go of Cheryl, turned her around and shot her in her stomach.

She gasped in pain. Max's eyes widened in shocked, Nick's mouth hanging opened slightly with Judy covering her mouth from seeing what just happened.

Voxroy pointed the gun at Cheryl's head after she fell down. " _ **Don't worry…**_ " he said. " _ **She'll live. That is if she can hold on, that is**_."

Max tightened his fist, looking at her helplessly. "What do you want…?" he said.

" _ **Splendid. You see, there's going to be a very important cargo on the way to Camelipatria on a train soon. It's said to be a very priceless artifact. I'd say in the next 3 hours? I'm giving you 5 hours to meet me at Mara Bay once you get the package. I'll send you the exact location to where we should meet once you're done. Don't disappoint me. Or every innocent animal will be involve.**_ "

With that, Voxroy took the back exit and left the bar. Max quickly bent over to Cheryl and shook her.

"Cheryl!" he called. "Come on, don't die!"

And just then, a police officer entered the bar in a hurry. "What happened here?!" he said.

The three turned to the officer. However, Nick and Judy knew him… Officer Wile… The coyote.

Max however glared at him. " _This officer came in too soon…_ " he thought. " _Is he… Voxroy…?_ "

Wile slowly grabbed for his tazer, assuring the three suspects that he wasn't going to harm them.

Max afterwards threw a smoke bomb and grabbed the two out and into his car. He quickly start his engine and drove off as fast as he can.

"Max, what's wrong?!" Judy said. "We could have explained everything!"

"I don't trust him…" he said. "Isn't it too much of a coincidence that a cop was there? Especially when Sheepiyou County only has sheriffs."

Nick and Judy looked at each other. Max was right… A cop, here? Especially when he was from Zootopia…

But the only thing Max could focus right now was to get that artifact Voxroy forced him to get. Max saw this as an oppurtunity. He was going to do it… But only to catch the one who betrayed him and his crew.

* * *

 **A/N:** _I spent a lot of time writing this. Because the heat has just begun. Very soon, the end will be here, guys and gals. Also, here's more info about Max that I forgot to put in the last chapter._

 **Max's info:** _Grew up in Tigerly's orphanage centre and was adopted by a wolf couple at the age of 4. That explains his good nose. Went to the same school as Nick until he was 10 before moving._

 _Oh and also, if you all are wondering what songs Max played in the care when they were on the way to Bearstow, it's 'Warera Omou Yueni, Warera Ari' by Kishidan. In Zootopia, they're Kishidan is known as Tanukishidan._

 _Also, sorry if there is any grammar mistakes or spelling mistakes. Ciao!_


	10. Voxroy's Identity

**A/N:** _Only 3 more chapters to go, including this one. So someone pointed out that this is becoming more about Max rather than Nick and Judy. Well, no. It's about Nick, Judy AND Max. Next one will focus on Nick and Judy a little more. So without further ado. Let's hop into it._

 **Disclaimer:** _Seriously? No._

* * *

"Why are we in Bearstow?" Nick said.

Max has taken them back to Bearstow and stopped his car by a trailer house. He exited and walked up to the door. Knocking on it hard.

"Bryan! Aaron!" he called.

The door opened slowly and a coyote opened the door. "What do you want?" he said, in a redneck accent.

"I need a bike," Max answered. "An all-terrain one."

"Sorry, fox," the coyote shrugged. "Mine's at the repair. The only one here is Bryan's."

Max walked to the back of the trailer. "Then I'm taking his."

"Hey!" said another coyote appearing from behind Aaron and walking up to Max. "You know why Aaron's is at the repairs? Because of you. You still owe him a new…"

Max quickly handed him some cash and shoved him away. "Keep the change," he said before putting on a helmet.

He started up the engine and turned to Nick and Judy.

"The train to Camelipatria shouldn't be hard to tell," he said. "Only one train can go in and out of Bearstow. You'll know it when you remember the train tracks." He gave them a couple of earpieces. "Stay in touch."

With that, he rode off to wherever it is he was going.

It took Judy and Nick a while to process but Judy then remembered. On the way to Bearstow for the first time to find Mr. Buckner, there was a train that was passing by them.

"I think I know where we can find the train," Judy said. She quickly hopped into the driver seat and put on the earpiece. Nick followed suit and looked at how serious she was. Judy was actually going with it and this was not something she'd actually do. Especially helping a suspect.

Nick smiled and puts some shades on to liven up the style.

The couple drove back to where they came and decides to follow the tracks. It was very bumpy but this was a serious matter and they weren't complaining about something small.

As they come upon a tunnel, Nick noticed the train on his right on a bridge. "I see it," Nick said. He pressed the button on his earpiece. "Max? What do we do if we see the train?"

There was static noise at first because they were going through a tunnel but then it became clear. " _There should be a second bridge_ ," he said. " _Get under it before it reaches there. Speed up and get a boat._ "

"Get a boat? How?"

" _Use your own ways._ "

The connection broke off and Nick shook his head in disappointment. Judy sped up to the second bridge, trying to get there before the train.

Meanwhile on Max's end, he was wearing his utility muzzle on top of a mountain, still on the bike with a parachute bag on him. His eyes were focusing on the right waiting to see if the train ever shows up. The mountain he was on was right above a bridge in miles away. His eyes were locked tight, waiting for a chance.

When he saw something passed on his right, he immediately went in full speed and ramped over the cliff of the mountain, he quickly got off and skydive towards the train. Few seconds later, he pulled open his parachute and glided down slowly, getting on top of the train.

He quickly removed the parachute off, but the bag was still on him and crawled his way forward slowly, trying not to fall off. He reached a red carriage with the number B6. He grabbed on to a pole tight as he tried opening the door. He managed to after a couple of tries and entered.

He took out his phone and checked the message given by Voxroy. 'Crate with a red X,' it said.

He looked around and scratched his head, hoping to find it quick. He looked over at every crate and he finally found one at the bottom of another with a red X on top of it. Lucky enough for him, there was a bunch of crowbars to his right and he used it to open the crate quickly. Inside was a bust of a gold lion with blue stripes on the mane. Max observed it carefully and shrugged.

He turned around and looked out as he saw that the train was crossing the bridge now. He jumped out and over the railing of the bridge and pull opened a reserved parachute as he slowly floated down to the river. As his head popped out, a boat came to him.

"You actually got it?" Nick said, giving him a paw up on the boat.

Max nodded and removed his muzzle. "Can't believe I'm doing this…" he said, looking at the bust. Max looked at Judy. "What's the matter, officer?" he continued. "I thought you hate stealing."

Judy looked down and focus on the boat. "Well, I do…" she said. "But if you didn't steal, then everyone else will be involved right?"

Nick gave a kiss on her head from behind.

"Nick!" she shouted blushing. "Not in front of someone!"

Nick chuckled and sat down. As for Max, he smiled. He now knows what it's like to have someone he loves. Seeing his best friend with his girlfriend made him brighten up a bit. He sighed as he remembered Sophie while he took a short nap.

2 hours and a half later, Judy stopped the boat at a dock right at the far north of a place called Mara Bay with Max's helped. They all got off and walked to the location given to Max a few minutes ago. They still had 40 minutes to spare too.

They walked into an alley.

Max looked at his phone to recheck the message. "Where the heck is he?" he said.

Silence at first but then footsteps were heard. They turned to the sound and just as what Max figured… Officer Wile appeared.

"I knew it…" Max said, showing the bust. "This what you want right?"

But instead, Wile punched him and kicked him a few times when Max was grounded.

"Max!" Nick called out.

"Not so fast!" said someone behind Wile. It was McGold, pointing a tazer at them. "Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde, you are under arrest." McGold watched as Wile kept kicking Max mercilessly. "So this is Robin Hood? Just what I expected… A fox." He turned to Nick. "Sorry about the misunderstanding, you two." He lowered the tazer. "I'll have your names cleared. Just get in the car and I'll explain this to the chief." McGold grabbed the bust and bent over to Max. "First, public places. Then, private security? Mammals like you really make me sick."

Nick and Judy watched helplessly as Officer Wile kept stepping on every part of Max's body.

Max wasn't even groaning in pain. He was enduring it and not even admitting defeat.

"Piece of criminal scum!" shouted Wile as he continued beating.

Nick took a step forward trying to stop him but McGold pulled him back and shook his head. Judy wanted to help too but both of them couldn't do anything. At least now they have the chance to explain everything. So they got in the back.

"Enjoy beating him up, Wile," McGold said opening his door and started up the engine. "Have fun, Max."

Max widened his eyes. " _What…?_ " he thought. How did McGold knew his name? He quickly stood up and banged the back door in front of Nick, trying to warn the two. But because of the beating he took, he could barely finish his sentence.

Wile then pulled him to the ground forcefully with the back of Max's head hit first on the concrete ground as he continued taking the beating from the coyote.

Nick looked back at his best friend getting beat up horribly. He frowned and his ears dropped. He sighed and placed his face in paws.

"What's wrong, Wilde?" McGold said, looking back at him.

"Nothing…" Nick said softly.

"It's just that, that was Nick's childhood friend," Judy answered.

"Bummer."

Nick slowly looked up and he saw something… A… Muzzle in the compartment glove in the front seat. But not just any muzzle. This one looked like the same one as Max's. Black skin with a gas cover and tank in the front with silver trimmings. Just like Max's…

"Where… Did you get that muzzle…?" Nick said.

McGold glanced at it and locked the car. Nick and Judy noticed this and tried opening the door. The jackal smirked and put on the muzzle and flipped a switch. Sleeping gas… And it was only a small amount too but it was so strong enough to put them to sleep.

Judy knew this gas. It was the same one that Max used at the museum on her and her fellow officers. Only… She couldn't hang on to this one.

" _ **Sorry, you two**_ ," he said in that exact demonic-voice that they heard earlier at the Living Pelts. " _ **I really WAS going to prove your innocence. But too bad.**_ "

Nick and Judy slowly fell asleep in the back and the gas resided. McGold afterwards turned to the left for a detour when he was on his way to the highway.

Meanwhile with Max…

He was slowly getting pummeled down by the angry coyote. Max let out a few coughs and looked at the coyote. This was no ordinary beatdown that he was giving but it seemed a bit too… Violent. The beating was familiar to him.

"Why… Why are you… *coughs* So… Angry…?" he said, catching his breath.

Wile kicked him in the gut and Max gritted his teeth in pain. "Don't play dumb with me, fox…" Wile said. "You're no hero. You're nothing but a murderer!"

Max frowned. "What…?" He didn't remember killing anyone. Not even when he was with the Robin Hoods.

The officer grabbed him by the collar. "My wife!" he shouted angrily. "McGold was even there and he told me about what he saw!"

Max looked at the Officer and smiled. He now understood why the beating was familiar. It was the same kind of beating he gave to those bullies when he tried protecting her. Only… This one was for revenge. "I see…" he said. "You're just another victim…"

Wile's angry expression disappeared. "What?"

And in an instant, Max punched him as hard as he can in the nose, almost breaking it.

Wile groaned in pain. He has never felt so much pain before.

"That's the reason why I didn't fight back…" Max said gasping for air, slowly standing up straight. "Because I would have broken your nose or other parts of you…"

The coyote just looked at him with one eye while gritting his teeth in pain, holding on to his bleeding nose.

Max turned on his heel and walked away from the officer. He took out his phone and opened up the radar app. Earlier when he was banging on the door, he had already placed a tracker and sure enough, he knew where it was going. The tracker was going back down south of Sheepiyou County. San Boarnardino Forest…

Max groaned. "Of course…" he said. He put his phone back and saw a red Trumpet Dholetona (Triumph Daytona). The rider just entered the store and Max sneaked to the bike and hotwired it. He quickly put on the helmet and rode off as fast as he can.

"Hey!" said the cheetah rider. "That's my bike!"

Max couldn't waste any time now. He knew that his friends were in trouble and he needed to get there quick. Now that he knew who Voxroy really was, the truth must come out…

* * *

 **A/N:** _Here you go everyone. Chapter 10, done. Sorry if it came out short. I'm writing chapter 11 now too. It'll be out as soon as I'm finished with it. Next chapter, Voxroy/McGold will explain everything. Why he betrayed them, why Greene (one of the Robin Hood) went savage, and most of all, why he kept Max alive all this time. There will be a total of 12 chapters. So the next one with the be the second last. Stay tune for chapter 11._


	11. Revelation

**A/N** : _I immediately wrote this one right after last chapter was posted. It is time for the truth. And here's some recaps of what happened all this time just in case if you forget._

 **Disclaimer:** _Disney owns Zootopia and its characters. There, I said it._

 **Recaps:** _Nick and Judy finally moved in. Everyone in the ZPD had the same case about the Robin Hood. Judy met the Robin Hood who she thought was Nick but was actually Nick's old friend, Max, who told them that Robin Hood is actually the name of their crew. Nick and Judy afterwards were suspected for meeting with the Robin Hood and were wanted but thanks to Max, they escaped to a place called Los Horserus. Max's old comrades were murdered by Voxroy, and ex-member of Robin Hood, on the night that they planned to meet but then police appeared and they were forced to go up north to Sheepiyou County where they afterwards suspected that Voxroy maybe a police officer after a threat at the Living Pelts, a bar run by a friend of Max. At first they thought it was Officer Darren Wile but it was actually, Jake McGold._

* * *

Nick opened his eyes slowly and finds himself surrounded by walls. He quickly stood up and shouted. "Judy! Judy!" There was a faint sound to his right and he turned to it. "Judy?"

"Nick?" Judy's voice finally broke through. However, unlike Nick, Judy was tied up around her body and there were more spaces around her. About four times bigger than the one Nick was in.

"Thank god…" he said, relieved. "Where are we?"

"I don't know…"

" _You…_ " said a voice through the speaker. " _Are in MY dormant._ "

Nick and Judy looked up to find McGold, smirking at them.

"Why are you doing this?!" Judy shouted.

McGold shook his head and put on the utility muzzle. " _ **Does this remind you of anything?**_ " he said in that demonic-voice.

Judy's ears dropped. She remembered now. Jake McGold… Is Voxroy… The one that murdered Max's comrades and shot Cheryl.

The jackal took off his muzzle. "Always hated wearing that thing…" he said. "Almost as if Frankie told us to know our place."

"Why did you do it then?" Nick finally spoke up, frowning at him. "Revenge?"

"Oh ho, no. More like… Punishing them. For betraying our crew."

"YOU betrayed them." Judy argued.

"NO!" McGold said with all his might. "I was loyal. I had a purpose in that group. But ever since everyone went their separate ways, I was still dealing with snob-nose commanders and chiefs in every police station that I have covered for us! And because of that, I still have to deal with these cases and yet the police officers still couldn't leave me alone about it."

"And you're okay with your friends dying?" Nick shouted.

"Friends…?" McGold looked away. "They aren't my friends… Not anymore… Especially not Max." The jackal walked into a room and speak through the microphone. " _You see_ ," he said. " _I've heard about how you two solved the Bellweather case. Whoopdie doo. But that was because she was a prey. Now imagine if a predator was the one planning all that. But… On second thought…_ "

McGold pushed a button and purple gas started coming out of the vents on Nick's side. He coughed a lot which made Judy banged the wall on her end.

"Nick?! What happened?!"

Nick put himself in a fetus position as he inhaled the gas reluctantly and soon… His pupils dilated. He got on all four and started growling, showing off his fangs and went totally berserk.

"Nick?! NICK?!" Judy called out. She turned towards McGold. "What did you do to him?!"

" _Why not I show you instead?_ " McGold said, laughing. He pushed another button which raised up the walls between her and Nick. " _You might wanna back up, little bunny._ "

Her face turning into total shocked when she saw it… Nick's clothes slowly ripped apart biting off anything he can find. He turned to Judy's direction and growled, crawling his way to her. She took a few steps back and ran.

The situation was more different this time. There was literally nothing in the room they were in. Only walls and lights. They were in a hole but there was literally no escape. The walls around them were about 16 feet high and there was nothing to slow down Nick or hide anywhere. And what's more, she was tied up.

Judy would kicked him whenever he came close to her. This was no longer the Nick she knew. He has totally turned into a savage animal.

"Nick…" she said, crying as she watched him crawl towards her, growling.

Nick plunged himself towards her as she closed her eyes before she could meet her end. But then a strong force quickly pushed him aside.

She opened an eye to find Max in front of her.

"Max!" she said. Max quickly untied her, setting her free. He quickly turned back towards Nick.

"Come on, Nick," he said, looking at his savage friend. "Snap out of it. This is the bunny you love that you're trying to eat here."

Nick launched himself towards Max and bit his neck. Max gritted his teeth in pain and pushed him aside. He held on to his bleeding neck. His paws begin to shake again as he saw the blood in his paws. He hit himself a couple times to get himself together only to be pinned down by Nick who was trying to bite his throat out.

Max quickly pushed him away again and gasped for air. He looked up at Nick slowly. He has finally made up his mind.

"Long ears…" he said to Judy. "Back away as far as you can…"

Max took off his gloves hesitantly and tossed them on the ground getting on all four. His fur begin to stand up with his pupil dilated almost looking like a cold-blooded predator.

Judy was trembling in fear. She was seeing two foxes, growling at each other, giving each other the coldest and most merciless looks. Nick ran towards Max and jumped towards him only to get his wrists bitten.

Max afterwards begin clawing him in the back but Nick was resisting. He turned around quickly and bit the same place where he bit Max's neck. Max cried in pain. He then gripped Nick's body and tossed him to the wall with ease, putting Nick almost out cold.

Unlike Nick, Max was aware of what he was doing. He looked at Nick trying to get back and catched his breath for a while. But without warning, Nick sprinted towards Max, biting his arm, tearing his fur savagely.

"Nick!" Judy called crying. "Stop this! Please!"

Nick froze and his body shook. Max noticed this. " _He's… Still fighting back…_ " Max thought. He knew Nick was still alive in there. He quickly took this opportunity and grabbed Nick by the neck, slowly strangling him. Nick was flailing, struggling to be released and still biting on Max's arm.

Max then quickly popped a plastic bubble in front of Nick's nose. Nick, after breathing in the scent, fainted.

Max put him down slowly and let him rest while he catches his breath.

Judy slowly makes her way towards the two. She looked at Max worriedly. She's seen what Night Howlers could do to predators but this… This was something new. She finally saw Max went full-on predator. And he was even scarier than the infected predators. But she was also so surprised at how quick his personality changed whe she saw his pupils were back to normal and his fur at ease.

Max looked at her back, still gasping for air. He then turned to his paws. Bloody… His paws were shaking again and he gritted his teeth in fear.

"I'm not afraid of you…" Judy said softly.

Max looked up at her. The two stared at each other for a while and he nodded in thanks. "Thank you…" he said. He turned back to Nick who was now breathing normally. "He should be okay now… That was the antidote that Frankie had spared…"

An applaud was heard coming towards them and they looked up. McGold, smirking at them. "Well done…" he said. "I really am impressed…"

Max stood up slowly and got in front of the two. He didn't want to get anyone else involved anymore. Especially those who were important to him.

"Enough," he said, facing McGold, or as he knew him as, Voxroy. The two stared at each other for a while. This was the first time they have met face-to-face without the muzzles and masks on. "I heard everything…"

"Oh?" The corrupt cop raised an eyebrow.

"WE betrayed you? We never had. We all just wanted to go our separate ways. And we started the crew for a reason. It was to give anyone who actually needed our help."

McGold laughed. "Do you think I cared about that? I only DID it because I was the leader of the group. Frankie made me in charge of the plans, the weapons, the info, EVERYTHING! I didn't care about any of you! I only joined you… Because I felt I was in control. But when Frankie decided to call it off…"

"You know your mistakes! You even killed a police officer's innocent wife who literally has nothing to do with any of our cases…"

McGold laughed. "You mean Wile's wife? That idiot would buy anything. Because of this I took advantage to cover us even more. He took this so personally, it was perfect for me to know his every motive."

"And that was the reason why Frankie called the crew off. From the start, we swore not to get any innocent mammals involved. When he got word out that a police officer's wife was killed by one of us, we have already polluted Robin Hood's name. And now I know who was responsible for her murder too… All because you thought you had the power to do so."

"Frankie made me leader of the crew, yes. But what about the one that calls the shot? It's always him. It's the same thing at every police station I go! I'm in control in a team, yet someone who is higher than me gets to tell me what I can and cannot do?! No… I'm not playing that game anymore. After I'm done with you… I'm starting up my own Robin Hood crew." He brought out a disc and showed it to Max. "This… This is where Frankie gets info from all of us. There were still elligible members. I could always use them."

Nick groaned in pain, slowly opening his eyes and the first thing he saw was Judy. She smiled and hugged him. "Oh Nick…" she said, relieved.

Max turned back at them and smiled. "Those Night Howlers…" he said turning back to the jackal. "Instead of shooting them, you made gas out of them."

"Exactly." He smirked.

"No wonder there weren't any evidence on Scope… But it still doesn't explain why the other officers weren't infected."

"That's because, the two officers interrogating him were preys… I modified the Night Howlers to only affect predators. Not just turned them into savages. But to turn them even more savage than before. But it seems YOU don't even need it to become a monster."

Max really wanted to hit him but breathed out, trying to calm himself. "I'm no monster…" he said.

"Oh yea…? What about 10 years ago then…?"

Max's eyes widened. "What…?"

McGold chuckled. "You really don't remember me, do you? Maybe this will help." McGold lifted his fur on his neck a little to revealed bite and claw marks.

Max remembered now… This jackal… Was one of the bullies… "Brad Jackalson…" he said finally remembered. "So it's you…"

"That's right. You see, 3 years ago, when I finally knew who… 'Ghost' is, I remembered clearly now. What you did to me and my friends… Scarred me for life. I became a police officer to begin with so I can find you. But… The job bit me in the tail and I hated being told to do everything. However… I was lucky enough to be chosen as a member of the Robin Hood. At first, I wanted to do it. It was fun too. Reminded me of how much control I was in among my friends. But what a total coincidence… The fox I was looking for… Was actually right by me, all this time. You know… I could have punched you if I knew who you were. But… Frankie told us not to show our faces. This is why I hate it, when others make the decision for me."

"Brad… I'm sorry for what I did… I didn't mean to…"

"SHUT IT, FOX!" The whole room got quiet. "YOU ARE A PREDATOR! YOU'RE SUPPOSE TO BE IN CONTROL OF A PREY! But instead… You protected one… In a way… You betrayed your kind…"

"I did not! Zootopia has been in peace for thousands of years. Preys and predators CAN live in harmony!" He showed Nick and Judy. "These two… They are proof that any species can even love each other."

The jackal, now known as Brad, lowered his ears. "Love…?" He clenched his paws tight into a fist. "I will never acknowledge this…" And soon after, he punched Max in the face.

"Max!" Judy called.

Max quickly got up. "Get Nick out of here. Go!"

Judy nodded and dragged Nick out of where the jackal came.

The two predators were now alone in the hole, face-to-face.

The first to strike was Brad when he punched Max. Max spitted out a bit trying to resist the pain.

"You don't understand, Max!" Brad said. "Preys are afraid of us! The proof was with the Bellweather case! A prey, afraid of predators and wants to control over them. But that was a mistake… It's us, the predators, who should be in control!"

"You're wrong!" Max slowly stood back up, looking back at Brad. "I was an orphan… I was adopted by two wolves… They treated me as if I was really their son… They weren't even mad that I was the reason we were forced to move out of Zootopia… Ever since then, I believed that not just predators of all species… But preys as well CAN live in harmony… That's why… I…"

Brad looked at him angrily as breathes heavily. "I don't wanna hear anymore of this nonsense…" he said. He kneed Max in the gut and elbowed his spine, putting him down.

Max began coughing, trying to breathe as he desperately tries to get up.

But Brad stomped on his back, keeping him down. "Then tell me what happened to that rabbit?" he said.

Max froze.

"What was her name again…? Sophie? Was she afraid of you?" Brad bent lower towards Max. "Did she saw how savage you were when you fought us? Did she run away?" He smirked. "Did she cry?"

"SHUT UP!" Max in an instant uppercut Brad so hard that the jackal was literally off of the ground for a few seconds with an almost broke jaw. Max afterwards got on top of him, going all animal, about to claw him.

"That's it…" said the jackal, smirking. "Be what you are. Finish what you started." Brad wasn't even fighting back. He wanted it to happen.

Max breathed some more and instead of clawing his throat, he tried to give the lightest punch possible but just enough to hurt him and not break his jaw.

"No…" Max said walking away from, retrieving his gloves from before. "I'm more than what I am..." he continued. "Because I have a soul."

Brad pulled out a gun with a Night Howler loaded inside. "Then… I'm afraid I have no choice…" he said pointing the gun at Max without him realizing.

But right before he could pull the trigger, he was zapped and fell to the ground, dropping the gun. Max turned around to find Judy, who was holding a tazer with Nick standing behind, grinned at him and gave him a peace sign.

"Guys!" Max called walking towards them. "Where'd you get the tazer?"

Someone walked up behind them. It was the coyote cop that beat Max up just now. "I heard everything… " he said walking towards his ex-partner. "I wanna kill you right now but…" He cuffed the jackal tight. "I'm more than just a predator. I'm a cop."

Max smiled and nodded. He slowly lost his balance.

He was still bleeding from his neck from Nick's bite just now. He then blacked out and his body dropped down with a thud.

* * *

 **A/N:** _There you go! Final chapter is being written now! Expect the final chapter next week! Because I'm sure you'll love it. It'll be short but I'm confident you'll all enjoy the final chapter._


	12. Starting Over

**A/N:** _At first, I thought of waiting for a week. But then I thought again and finally, screw it! Here it is! Final chapter. This one will be totally short like in Meeting the Folks. Anyway, let's go!_

 **Disclaimer:** _Zootopia, Disney._

* * *

Max slowly opened his eyes to see the sun shining out the window to his left. He looked around. He was in something like a hospital but his clothes were still on. And… Was bandaged heavily too. However, Max didn't like being in hospitals or clinics. He got off of bed slowly and walked out the room. The first thing he saw were police officers everywhere. He looked left and right as he walked his way out.

But it took him a while to realized he was back in Zootopia. His ears dropped. " _How the heck did I get back here…?_ " he thought. To his right, he saw Chief Bogo explaining the case to the press conference and behind him were Judy and a wounded Nick covered in bandage too.

Nick saw him and smiled as he walked towards his friend with Judy following him. "Hey, Max," he said. "How's your wound? Hope I didn't bite too hard."

Max chuckled and rubbed the bite mark Nick gave him. "It could have been worse," he said. "But this isn't the worst I've ever felt." The two shared their laughs at each other's remarks. "Anyway," Max continued. "I should really get going."

"Stay a little," Judy said.

"Yea," Nick agreed. "You still haven't visited our place yet after all."

"I'm flattered, guys," Max said. "But… I think I better go otherwise, you know, mammals will be uncomfortable with a convict around?"

Judy and Nick looked at each other and smiled.

"About that," Judy said. "Your records have been clean. We made sure we removed everything right after you left Zootopia. It's almost as if you never left." Judy gave him a paper with all his records. It was totally wiped clean including the part where he left to Canide Town.

"What about the Vora Lisa? And that statue thing? And… Brad?" Max said, looking up.

"The Vora Lisa has returned and as for the statue of Maaheskhamun, it's being shipped off to San Fenneco. As for… Brad Jackalson, we made sure he'll be going away for long, long time."

Max nodded and folded the paper, giving it back to Judy. "I appreciate it but I don't think…"

"Max?" said a female voice behind him. He turned around to see a white bunny coming up to him.

"Er… Hi," he said, with a nervous smile.

"It really is you…" she said softly, smiling.

Max frowned at her at first. But as he looked up on her left ear… He knew who she was. The left ear was bent. A white bunny.

"Sophie…?" he said, looking at her.

"We… May have accidentally stumbled upon her records," Nick said.

"So we decided to give her a call and asked if she could see an old friend," Judy added.

Max was listening but he just could not keep his eyes away from the white bunny. He was still a little worried so he looked down.

The bunny, Sophie, walked up towards him slowly, placed her paw on his bandaged neck and hugged him.

He looked down on her and patted her head. "Sophie…" he said.

She pulled the hug away slowly, holding on to his paw, and slowly removing his right glove.

At first, Max pulled his right paw away quickly but Sophie held on to it softly. She wanted to feel his paw on hers. Bared. And as she pulled off his glove, the first thing she noticed was his sharp claws.

Max looked at her worriedly, hoping not to scare her. Instead, she held on to his unglove paw, feeling his bandage around it slowly, trying to be careful not to hurt him even the slightest. She slowly marked the palm of her paw with his claw softly and shivers with a gasp.

He looked at her. "Does… Doesn't that hurt…?"

She nodded and looked up at him. "But… I know you don't mean it…"

Max watched as she entertwined their paws together. "I'm sorry…" he said. "For scaring you…"

She looked up at him. "No…" she said. "I should apologize. I can't imagine how alone you were… I know you were just trying to protect me but… I ran away and…" She hugged him tighter as if she didn't want to see him go away anymore. "I'm so sorry for leaving you…"

Max for the first time in a while finally smiled completely and hugged her back.

Judy and Nick who were witnessing this smiled at each other and held one another's paws, as they just watched the two.

"I'm a kindergarten teacher now, Max," Sophie said.

"No way," Max replied with a smile. He remembered clearly about Sophie's dream on becoming a kindergarten teacher. He never would have thought she actually has become one.

"What about you?"

"I er…"

"Robbing banks?"

He looked at her, surprised.

She smiled and hugged him. "It doesn't matter," she said. "I finally got to see you again. And I'm so glad you're okay."

Max rubbed the back of her neck. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you…"

"We…" Sophie lowered her voice. "Could have been the first fox/bunny couple too…"

Max looked at her. "There's always second," he said.

Sophie looked down in disappointment. "Max… You should know that… I already have a boyfriend…"

Max nodded slowly in disappointment as well. "Of course…"

"And he's a bunny too."

He sighed. "Figures…"

"But…" she stood on her toes, grabbing onto his hoodie and gave him a light kiss on the lips. As she pulled away slowly, she hugged him again. "There's no way I'm keeping my lips waiting for that…"

Max stared at her at first. Then lifted her face up a little by the chin and kissed her back on the lips lightly as well. He smiled at her after pulling back. "I've been waiting for you to be the first for my lips…"

She smiled back at him. "Do you… Wanna hang out like old times…?"

"I er… Got stuff to do… And some dates to owe now."

Her eyes widened. "Dates?" she immediately glared at him.

"Yea… I may have kinda told the mammals that maybe until I find you, I'll take them out but now…Well, I gotta keep my promise. Now that I finally found you."

She gave him the most threatening eyes at him and he smiled nervously with a light chuckled.

"Fine," she said. "But it's just a few dates right?"

"Er… Does 81 count as few?"

"81?!"

"Yea… Some are even males and there are others from other countries even."

Sophie's eyes immediately burnt with rage and Max was finding this terrifying.

"B-but I swear that there's nothing more to it!" he said, his arms flailing in the air. "I only owe them dinner and lunch! Nothing more!"

She shut his mouth by placing her index finger on his lips. She sighed. "I guess it's fair considering I'm dating someone else too. But…" She looked at him in the most gentle eyes he's ever seen. "Promise me that if we ever get a chance, we'll… Date… Like for real…" She looked away shyly.

Max looked at her at first and responded back by hugging her. "Definitely…" he said softly.

She smiled, reluctantly pulling away from the hug and putting his glove back on to him. The two afterwards exchange phone numbers, keeping in touch more often. And hopefully, one day, they'll get a chance to finally be together just like they wanted. Sophie waved at him goodbye and he waved back. He sighed and looked up in the blue sky.

"Well, well," Nick said. "You seem to be happy."

Max glanced at him and snatched the paper he gave Judy earlier away from her. "I think I change my mind…" he said, regretting.

Nick and Judy laughed.

"So what're you gonna do now?"

Max thought for a while. "I know I'm gonna have to go back to so many places I've been to owe the mammals the dates like I promise," he said. "But before that…"

Moments after, the three were at the same Japanese restaurant that they ate together the other day. Nick and Judy had already finished their meal but Max kept eating ramen as if it was forever. In fact, he has already eaten 8 bowls of them too.

"Oyaasan! Moichido!" he said.

"Hai, hai," said the badger, preparing some more ramen. "Doushite, Makkusu? Kimi wa kyou shiawasena youdesu. Nani ka yoidesu ka?"

"Saa na?" Max with a smile, shrugging.

The badger laughed and went back to his work and prepared more ramen just in case.

"How many bowls have you eaten already?" Nick said, tapping on his fingers.

"Who knows?" he answered, shrugging. "Hai, moichido!"

It was already the evening and Max ate 12 bowls of ramen but yet, Judy and Nick were impressed that he still hasn't burped. However, they were happy at least that he hasn't eaten a single chocolate bar for the whole day. That's a huge change

Nick and Judy even got to show him around the house. They even decided to let him sleep for the night after all that's happened. Max was so happy he hugged the two and lifted them up in the air. He was struck with too much pure joy already from this morning too.

"Dude, come on," Nick said laughing. "You're being too happy here."

He let them go and bowed to Nick and Judy. "Thank you so much," he said.

"What're you gonna do now?" Judy said, laughing.

He thought and smile. "For once… Get some real sleep. After what's happened lately, I seriously need it."

The next day came, and Max, Judy and Nick were already at the train station. Max was about to leave to Los Horserus to start off his first debt with Jasmine, the receptionist at Cosmos Towers. Then afterwards pay a visit to the hospital for Cheryl and maybe buying her take out. But, he'll improvised on the way anyway.

"So, how long will it be?" Nick said.

"Shouldn't be more than a month," Max answered. "I got some mammal friends that can get me a private flight even."

Nick shook his head. "Seriously, how do you even met those mammals?"

Max laughed.

" _NEXT STOP: LOS HORSERUS_ "

"Well," he said picking up his suitcase. "This is my train apparently."

"Take care of yourself now," Judy said.

"I will. And if you see Sophie, tell her to contact me whenever she feels worried. I'll always answer."

"Sure thing."

Max smiled. "Nick," he said hugging his friend. "Ms. Hopps," he said, holding on Judy's paw and kissed it.

She giggled and Nick chuckled.

Max got on board and waved at them. "See you soon. You guys better get married the next time we meet."

The two smiled as the door closed with Max still waving at them through the window.

Nick wrapped an arm around Judy. "You know…" he said. "Marriage really doesn't sound bad."

She elbowed his side playfully and shook her head, smiling.

"What? It's true."

Max on the other hand, put on his earphones and tuning in some music as the wheels of the trains rolled towards back to Los Horserus. This was going to be a long month to cover up…

* * *

 **A/N:** _There you have it people. Hope you enjoyed it. It was short yes but I definitely enjoy writing the scene of Max and Sophie's reunion. So anyway, here are some infos on Sophie._

 **Sophie's info** : _She has become a kindergarten teacher for 3 years, the same year when the Robin Hood crew separated. Very shy and loves hugging Max a lot. Especially his tail. Unlike Max who is an otaku, she is a gamer instead. Her favorite game, Dark Souls…_

 _There'll be more info of Sophie in my tumblr and a reference to her. Enjoy. Damn, I'm tired. I actually wrote chapter 10, 11 and 12 all in one day. I was so happy with the results._

 **Conversation between Max and the restaurant owner** _:_

 _ **Max: "Boss! One more!"**_

 _ **Boss: "Okay, okay. What's wrong, Max? You seem happy today. Did something happen?"**_

 _ **Max: "Who knows?"**_

 _There will be a follow up to this story and this will be only about Nick and Judy. And this time, it's only about them and romance. I also plan to do a bonus for Max too. Tell me if you guys wanna read Max's story as well through your review. Because I'd really like to focus only on him and Sophie for once._

 _Also, listen to 'Warera Omou Yueni, Warera Ari' by Kishidan. Because it fits well with the ending. Anyway, ciao!_


End file.
